Sunday, August 22, 2010

A Deadly Love Affair

Calamity loves the poorest of the poor.
From the North, East, West, and South (news) comes stories of calamities of historic proportions. Floods in Pakistan have reportedly displaced four million people, created hundreds of thousands of homeless refugees, drowned almost 1500 people and 200,000 livestock. And the forecast? More rain.
Recent rains in China have ravaged or buried villages and towns. Of course, it's the poor that seem to be suffering the most.
Haiti: Who can forget the earthquake and seasonal rains (hurricane season is here) that fell on the heads of the poorest people in the Western hemisphere.
U.S. Gulf Coast: Everybody has heard about Katrina...it's old news; but not quite. It seems that of the funds sent to help New Orleans rebuild, three-quarters of a billion unspent dollars are sitting, working for no one, rebuilding nothing. Allegations are being made that it is the poorest of the poor (read Blacks) that are the last to be helped though they may have been the first to lose their homes.
I will not even attempt to explain why it is as it is...or certainly appears to be. Some will say, "Judgments from God," and others will call it the "Work of Satan;" sweeping as many as he can into eternity while they are without the Gospel. Both raise questions: Both are problematic.
These are disasters with dire political and economic confounders. Pakistan needs billions of dollars from nations that (historically) have been able to lend assistance. But in today's global economy, none of the pockets are as deep as they were in the past.
Man is without answers to this worldwide multilemma. While not ignoring the poor, and having done all that we can for the Lord while we are still in the world, we move forward  with the Apostle Paul as he writes: "...forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 3:13b4st4].
Blessings on all in the coming week, and especially as the world plows all-ahead-full into what remains of these end times. e.c.

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