Sunday, February 10

Thanking Him for Protection

As you've probably heard, Super Tuesday turned into a night of super tornadoes here in Tennessee. A tornado touched down in Fairview during the first cell of storms that went through, and by God's grace, we survived with no damage whatsoever. Although we weren't that scared on Tuesday night (it really didn't seem THAT bad here), it's been alarming to discover just how close the Fairview tornado was to our house. We had the news on and were watching the radar on weatherchannel.com, but we never heard the tornado or saw anything other than lots of lightning and some hail. If we had known that the tornado was just 1-3 miles south of us, we would have been hiding out in the closet downstairs instead of watching from upstairs! Over thirty homes were destroyed in Fairview, and we drove by this church today on our way to church. (Here are some more pictures.) We drive this way to church every Sunday, and to see the destruction and the path of fallen trees and debris just a few miles away was definitely a sobering sight. It looked like a steamroller drove down over the hill and flattened every tree in its path.

On the positive side, it's been wonderful to see how our church has rallied to help tornado victims, and the little town of Fairview has really pulled together. Tragedy does have a way of bringing out the best in people. The kids and I had the chance to volunteer yesterday, sorting donations and clothing so that everyone who lost their homes can come "shopping" and start to rebuild their lives again. I know that this earth and our belongings are not all there is to this life, but to lose every earthly possession has to be one of the most devastating things to face. Even more so, I think of the thirty-three families across Tennessee who are without a loved one today because of these storms. So many times natural disasters are far away, and while I feel for the people, it's not the same as when the storm is literally in your town. The feeling of "that could have been us" was always in the back of my mind this week.

So we will keep reaching out to those who have been affected, and we will keep thanking God for his protection of our family. Hug your families a little tighter tonight. I know I will be! (Oh, and if they say there are tornados sighted, just go to your "safe place," okay? I wish we had taken a bit more precaution that night. Lesson learned!)

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yikes! I didn't know the storms were that close to you guys. I'm so glad you are safe. The church photos really illustrated the incredible power of the tornado.

Thanks for the sobering reminder, and reasons to be thankful.

-Gudie

Lucinda Perry said...

Wow! I'm glad you all are ok. That's kind of scary. God sure is good! Thanks for the pics of the kiddos. They are both growing up so fast. Love you lots!!!

Anonymous said...

I was thinking about you and wondering how close you were to the devestation. I am so glad that you are okay, but my heart is sad for those who aren't. I have a healthy respect for tornados... you don't need to tell me twice to head to the basement. My philosophy is better same than sorry... unlike Brett's who's let's go outside and watch. I miss you and we'll have to chat sometime soon!