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Earthquake -- January 21, 2001 by
Dave
The earth bucked and shuddered. The
ground began to move like JelloTM. As buildings began to teeter,
the desperate leaped from the windows, balconies and rooftops; 400 hundred schoolchildren
were buried alive. The 7.9 magnitude earthquake in India struck without warning this day,
leaving an estimated 15,000 dead and countless more tens of thousands homeless.
Roads and bridges were damaged,
slowing the relief efforts. Many were forced to dig barehanded for survivors, expending
every effort to save the lives of those that needed help the most.
I can't imagine the pain that many
faced as neighbors, friends and love ones lost their lives. Would I have been one of those
volunteers digging away the earth barehanded to find the lost? Would I have stopped moving
the earth when the blisters made their way on my hand and fingers? Would I have continued
even when the flesh on my hands wore away and blood showed through the cloth wrapped
around my self-inflicted wounds? Yes, I would. And you would too, knowing that what you
are doing might save a life, restore a family, or help the injured.
On January 21, 2001, it was a quiet
and pleasant Sunday in the small town of Panton. Being a military man as I am, when the
pastor said "Dismissed," I headed out the door. I notice several people at the
corner store, locals driving by with their ice shanties strapped to the back of their
trucks; a neighbor examining his four wheeler.... How many of these people went to church?
How many know the saving grace of God? I suspect hundreds of people in this small town
will die and will not have made a commitment to Christ. What is my responsibility to the
lost, those that need help? What am I willing to do to save the lost? Am I willing, even
if I could receive injury? What are our responsibilities to the lost?
[Mat 28:18-20] And Jesus came and
said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go
therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age."
John is known as the disciple of
love because he testifies to God's love in Christ toward the world (John 3:16). Our Lord
tells his disciples to love one another as He has loved them (John 13:34), and there is no
greater love than that shown when someone lays down his life for his friends (John 15:13).
It is this love that moved God to
give his own Son for the life of the world.
We need to fully understand what God
has done for us. Here are a few questions answered for us in the Bible:
 | Ps. 5:11-12. How do repentance and faith go
together?
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| Rev. 2:6. What does the Lord hate?
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| Is it wrong to hate something that is evil?
See Is 61:8, Zech. 8:16-17, Mal. 2:16, Mark 3:5 and Rom. 12:9
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| Is it correct to say, "We should hate
the sin, but love the sinner"?
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| Rev. 2:7. Is this letter meant only for the
original people who lived in Ephesus or does it apply also to us today. [Ephesus was the
most important city of the ancient province of Asia Minor, the hub of three great trade
routes. The city was a hotbed of cults, the site of the great temple of Diana and numerous
other pagan temples (Act 19:19) Paul was the founder of the Ephesian church. Tradition
tells us that John latter became the chief pastor as Ephesus]. See Rev 1:3
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| What is the tree of life? See Gen 2:8-9.
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We should make every effort to move the
dirt, broken foundations, trash, and all the other impediments that paralyze our neighbors
and eventually take away their very life. Are you ready for a little Earthquake
Relief? You can start right here at home.
Dave is the sound engineer
and business manager for Clean Slate, a Contemporary Christian band out of Panton,
Vermont. You have found their web-site @ www.CleanSlateMusic.com.
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