Cyndi and I could barely talk as we watched the horror that unfolded in Texas early Saturday morning from the safety of our family room. The loss of life was overwhelming. And the tragedy of losing children overloaded our senses. The disaster was unimaginable.
I suspect that even the more faithful among us can’t help but ask, “Where was God in all of this tragedy?”
The primary focus is, as it should be, on caring for the survivors and searching for the missing. Cleanup and rebuilding will come in time, as will investigations into whether more lives could have been saved. The lessons learned will likely be identified and hopefully lead to preventive measures for the future.
Of course, opinions are already circulating as investigative reporters uncover who did or didn’t do what should have been done. Officials have labeled the tragedy a “perfect storm” given the combination of factors involved. It was also called a 100-year flood, considering the historical frequency of floods of this magnitude.
In his newsletter published by the New York Times, writer David Wallace-Wells raises questions that the broadcast media seem to want to skip over. First, floods, even those once labelled 500-year events, are happening with greater frequency.
The president, who insists climate change isn’t real, ordered the retirement of the database of billion-dollar disasters long maintained by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But hiding history doesn’t keep it from repeating itself. The pricetag of ignoring climate change, both in terms of dollars and the loss of life, is increasing rapidly. Wallace-Wells noted that nearly two-thirds of climate-related disasters over the past couple of years came from unspectacular-sounding storms.
My answer to the question regarding God’s presence in the midst of a storm is that God is always nearby. And I believe God weeps with us. But does God ever calm the storm?
First, we can’t be sure that God didn’t take some preventive action. We can’t be sure whether God’s fingerprints were on proposals for warning systems that were occasionally implemented and more often ignored. Nor can we be certain whether God’s voice was heard by first responders trying to warn residents.
One thing is sure. God is trying to warn us that climate change is real, and to ignore God’s warnings is to ignore God and put our faith in other gods. We are quickly becoming a pagan nation led by people who try to say the right words but don’t put love into action.
Both Mark and Luke tell a story about Jesus calming a storm in time to prevent the storm from sinking the boat carrying Him and His disciples. Jesus was asleep when a storm suddenly began to cause their boat to fill with water.
The disciples awoke Jesus in a panic. “We are about to die,” the disciples said as they cried out to Jesus. In Mark’s telling, one of the disciples asked Jesus, “Don’t you care?” But the storm ended on Jesus’ command, and they were all safe. “Where is your faith?” Jesus asked them.
Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, “Be quiet!” and he said to the waves, “Be still!” The wind died down, and there was a great calm. Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Why are you frightened? Do you still have no faith?
Luke 8:22-25
Is this all it takes to avert potentially disastrous storms? Yes, but there’s more to the story. We also have work to do. Faith looks a lot like love in action, more so than empty words.
This is our final episode of our Heaven series and the conclusion of our companion book, The First Phone Call From Heaven. Mitch Albom left us with a creative, surprising, and heartwarming ending.
In a nutshell, Sully’s investigation into the mysterious phone calls from heaven came to the conclusion he had hoped for. Busted! Well, that’s the way it seemed at first. Albom shares numerous philosophical insights throughout the story he tells. The one that best fits the story’s end is “Desire sets our compass, real life steers our course.”
The big day arrived in Coldwater with all the fanfare of a well-orchestrated major event. The world was watching. The producers were prepared for the wait. The longer it took, the more advertising dollars poured into the networks covering the event.
Those hoping to maximize profits were disappointed when, too soon into the extravaganza, several phones began ringing at once.
Meanwhile, the mastermind behind the plot was being exposed. An expert in all the capabilities needed to pull off such a believable scam had moved to Coldwater after covering up his son’s disastrous mistake that resulted in the Hornet FA-18, flown by Scully, clipping a twin-engine Cessna headed for the same runway where both aircraft had clearance from the tower to land.
Once the media caught onto the story, the critics’ reactions were fast, furious, and a bit condescending. “I told you so” sums up their collective response.
As Coldwater returned to its usual rhythms, Abom writes, “The world absorbed the Coldwater phenomenon the way a shaken snow globe lets its white flakes settle to the bottom. As happens with all miracles, once life goes on, those who believe retell them with wonder. Those who do not, do not. No one seemed to notice how, in their own way, the calls had steered people to just what they needed.”
This included answered prayers as local pastors saw a rise in church attendance.
As the story comes to an end, Scully’s seven-year-old son, Jules, awakened by a noise, puts a toy phone to his ear and smiles.
You can join us each Sunday in person or online by clicking the button on our website’s homepage. Click here to watch. This button takes you to our YouTube channel. You can find more information about us on our website at FlintAsburyChurch.org.
This is a reminder that we publish a weekly newsletter called the Circuit Rider. You can request this publication by email by sending a request to FlintAsburyUMC@gmail.com, or let us know when you send a message through our website. We post an archive of past editions on our website under Connect – choose Newsletters.
Pastor Tommy
Our series was inspired by Mitch Albom. The First Phone Call from Heaven. New York: HarperCollins, 2014.
David Wallace-Wells. “We Can Adapt and Prepare for Floods. But Will We?” © New York Times, July 9, 2025. Retrieved from: link