When Floods Come

What do you do?

What do you do when the floods come. And they will come. This past week our nation has been hit with another tragedy. Not the first. Not the last. The latest. And it is unbearably heartbreaking. A terrible and unexpected flood hit our great state of Texas. Many people have died. As of this moment, the death toll sits at 121 with more than 170 still missing. 

What about the children?

The hardest part for most of us, are the heart wrenching stories we are hearing about the girls that were at Camp Mystic. The sleep away camp that they undoubtedly were excited to attend. Some nervous, some counting the days until they got to spend a few days singing songs, playing games, and bonding with other girls their age and counselors they love. All of the girls left their homes and their families for this long-awaited summer experience. Some will come home, forever changed, and some never will.

It could have been any of us.

I was that nervous child attending camp oh so many years ago. I sent my own children when they were young. I bet many of you attended camp as children or send you little ones off to have adventures of their own in the summertime. Each time I heard of a courageous camp counselor I thought of my own daughter. The very same week that these precious children were at Camp Mystic, my oldest daughter was also at camp with High Schoolers that she leads every Wednesday night at HSM (High School Ministry...not to be confused with High School Musical, although there certainly are some similarities).

• Dancing
• Singing
• Making new friends
• Reuniting with old ones
• Playing games
• Learning
• Growing
• Making Memories to last a lifetime

But what happens when that lifetime is cut short?

How do you go on as the ones left behind? These girls were at a Christian camp. They undoubtedly heard of the love of Jesus and called on His name as the floodwaters rose. The children who were swept away from this earth were greeted by His gentle voice and strong arms, welcoming them home. No, they did not make it back to their earthly homes, but they are in their forever homes. They were just fortunate enough to make it their sooner than we did. 

Fortunate? How can I say they were fortunate?

Yes. They are fortunate. We are the ones who are hurting and lost. But not those precious children.

• They feel no pain. 
• They feel no sorrow. 
• They feel so heartache. 
• They feel no dread
• They feel no agony.
• 
  
• They feel joy
• They feel peace
• They feel healthy.
• They feel complete.
• They feel love.

What's next?

How does a parent go on without their child? A sibling without their partner in crime? A family member without the one who brings sunshine into their lives? And what about the others? A husband without his helpmate? A wife without her soulmate? So many people are missing someone tonight. Some know where their loved ones are, and some are still searching. What does tomorrow bring? No one knows the answer to that question. 

Except God.

Friends, we don't always know how we will get through the next day. The Texas floods were horrific and many people are hurting right now. Other people have been hit with floods of their own.

• Illness
• Breakups
• Death
• Job loss
• Unexpected news,
• School, work, and relationship issues

Hard conversations have to be had, lives are changed, and there are times when you feel like you can't even breathe. You were sailing through life happily, and then a storm hits, and the floodwaters rise. Everything changes in an instant and we don't know where to turn. We don't know how to stop the fear, the pain, and the hurt.

But He does.

He knows exactly what you're going through and how you will make it another day. He holds you up when you can't hold yourself together. He understands your feelings even when you can't. Friends, He is the answer to life's why questions. Knowing Him means you don't have to know the why. You only have to know the Who. 

Who will be there when the water recedes, and you are left with the aftermath of the storm? God. It's always God. Maybe life won't look as it did before the storm, before the flood came, and before it all looked different, but we can believe that with Him, we will be safe, we will be comforted, and we will live happily ever after, after. After the flood. 

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. 

There will be no more death

or mourning or crying or pain, 

for the old order of things has passed away.

-Revelation 21:4