Nena Arias | September 7, 2021
“For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”
Romans 8:19-21 (ESV)
It is necessary to understand how to process your thoughts and actions in the face of natural disasters that come from time to time. Lately we have seen great devastation created by hurricanes, flash flooding, wildfires, droughts, and the like.
Any devastation of massive proportions brings out the best and worst in human nature. Upon seeing the destruction and human suffering, many people’s hearts are moved to help the unfortunate. Vicariously, we see ourselves in their position and if it was happening to us, we would want someone to help us. Loving our neighbors is best manifested in displays of compassion and heroism even to the point of putting your life on the line to lend a helping hand. The other side of the coin is that there are a few that let their evil tendencies take over to exploit the crises for personal gain; these people are devoid of compassion. However, the good hearts always surpass those who want to do evil, and that is always the good news.
Many natural disasters cause such devastation to a region that it may require months and years for recovery and all that it entails. People will need to restore the material things they lost. Regarding lives lost, no amount of money can quantify the loss of humans or replace them. People will need to look to God because only he by his Holy Spirit can truly comfort grieving hearts. It is the long haul that requires calm minds to sort things out. History teaches that people can rebound if the situation is not so grave to cause the collapse of their civilization. In that case, it never rebounds to its former glory. There are transcendental lessons to be learned in such cases.
Every one of us that has gone through the wrath of nature in any of its manifestations knows what others are experiencing. Those who have never gone through a severe natural disaster must go beyond the amusement of watching the news. People go through real pain and anguish; none of us should be passive bystanders in the face of human suffering. There is always an opportunity to do our part in any capacity according to the resources we have available, regardless of how little it may seem; for those in need it means a great deal, so don’t hold back. We are blessed to have wonderful organizations whose sole purpose is to help in these times of crises, and they are set up to do just that. So, at the very least we can donate to these reputable organizations to play a part in alleviating the suffering of others.
In times of natural disasters, we must beware of the many unscrupulous individuals that see tragedy as a way to scam people’s money through fake organizations pretending they are going to use the donations to help those in need. Be wise and do your homework and only donate to legitimate organizations that are trustworthy. Be a good steward of the resources you are contributing. We, at Cultural Legacy support and join the relief efforts of reputable organizations that have a sound track record in the work they do whether at the national or international level.
When disaster strikes, it is not uncommon that God gets the blame for not stopping the destruction. God is love, but we must not ignore that he is also the one that sets the standards in place of how we should live. America is plagued with severe spiritual and moral diseases; this is lethal if these continue to go untreated. We are in the battle for the soul of this nation; the good news is we have the past centuries as reference to go back to know what it was that led us to be an exceptional nation that has done so much good for the world. We must continue to be a compassionate and generous nation to the hurting in the world.
If our confidence is in the God of the Bible, we react to natural disasters with renewed minds and commitment to transform our national problems. To better help a world in crisis, we must be able to know which way is most efficient.
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”
(Psalm 20:7)