Today we saw a bright ball in the sky. As we walked toward it, we squinted our eyes as we were not so sure what it was. We longed for it's beaming warmth to touch our skin. We breathed it in deep and then recognized, it was the sun. For the past week, our region has had alarming rainfall. There is no tropical storm causing it. We are under what the meteorologists are calling a "100 year rain." The sunshine today proved they are talking about a rain they have not seen in 100 years. We are glad because we were feeling like it was going to rain for 100 years. Creeks flooded all over our city on Monday. Unfortunately, there were also deaths and entire neighborhoods are underwater. Pray for them as they sort out these unimaginable circumstances.
Our home overlooks a creek that runs through the lower part of our property. It is one of our favorite views from our kitchen window. We have a fire pit down by the creek that we enjoy and an old horse barn that reminds me of simpler times.
To get to the fire pit and barn, you have to cross the creek by stepping on the rocks. We were told there once was a bridge there, but it was washed away in Hurricane Opal. We could not imagine that force, given the way the creek is on most days......
However, when it rains, the creek does swell. We enjoy the white caps as the water tumbles over the rocks after a rain. I took this picture back in the spring after a good soaking. I was reminded of a sweet memory of Brock:
Every time the creek's waters would rise due to the rain, he gleefully would exclaim as he looked out the window, "Ceek's back, ceek's back, ceek's back!" (translation- "The Creek is back!") until someone would acknowledge what he was seeing. Now every time after the rain, one of us will look out the window and say "Ceek's back," and we all smile. Gosh, we miss his little voice!!
Well, on Monday, the creek came back with a vengeance. We were having lunch around 1pm. We commented on how the creek looked more like a river raging through the woods. We were mesmerized on how fast and full it was as we watched huge logs be swept off by its force, passing in mere seconds. Only minutes later, Barrett came running to tell me there was water everywhere. He said, "The fire pit is all by itself." I could not believe my eyes when I got to the window. The banks had swelled over. Their boundaries gave way. There was rushing water all through the area. Our fire pit became a small island. We watched astonishingly as we saw the two buckets we had down there swept away. We felt for sure we were going to see the barn and the fire pit float away as we witnessed the water gush under their foundations. It caused quite a bit of excitement around here.
We were even a bit panicky as it seemed things were out of control. We talked about it being a great visual of how the waters rose when Noah built the ark. How we could imagine the waters coming "up" from the earth as it seemed that was what was happening here in such a short period of time.
"In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, on the seventeenth day of the second month—on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. 12 And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.Genesis 7:11-12."
As the waters at the end of our driveway were also flooding over the road, all I could think about was that I knew I should have gone to the grocery store yesterday. Here we are going to be stranded in our home with "nothing" to eat. Still, Drew & the boys' main concern was for the fire pit. The anxiety kept building and would not wane. I was reminded of the One, who told the waters where to gather and the dry ground to appear. Genesis 1:9 I told the boys that God was still in control, and He has told these flood waters just how far to come. If we lose the fire pit, we will just replace it when we can. While my assurance calmed them a bit, there was still something deep inside that inner boy that said he needed to do something. I finally agreed for them to go outside and look without the barrier of the windows. I told them to only stand right outside our basement door on the rock. But, not before I scared them to death by telling them the danger if they took one wrong step and slipped and fell into the raging water (60 feet down a gradual hill :) ). They were quieted in their steps as the sound of the raging waters was so loud. Asa took this video.....
Our home overlooks a creek that runs through the lower part of our property. It is one of our favorite views from our kitchen window. We have a fire pit down by the creek that we enjoy and an old horse barn that reminds me of simpler times.
To get to the fire pit and barn, you have to cross the creek by stepping on the rocks. We were told there once was a bridge there, but it was washed away in Hurricane Opal. We could not imagine that force, given the way the creek is on most days......
However, when it rains, the creek does swell. We enjoy the white caps as the water tumbles over the rocks after a rain. I took this picture back in the spring after a good soaking. I was reminded of a sweet memory of Brock:
Every time the creek's waters would rise due to the rain, he gleefully would exclaim as he looked out the window, "Ceek's back, ceek's back, ceek's back!" (translation- "The Creek is back!") until someone would acknowledge what he was seeing. Now every time after the rain, one of us will look out the window and say "Ceek's back," and we all smile. Gosh, we miss his little voice!!
Well, on Monday, the creek came back with a vengeance. We were having lunch around 1pm. We commented on how the creek looked more like a river raging through the woods. We were mesmerized on how fast and full it was as we watched huge logs be swept off by its force, passing in mere seconds. Only minutes later, Barrett came running to tell me there was water everywhere. He said, "The fire pit is all by itself." I could not believe my eyes when I got to the window. The banks had swelled over. Their boundaries gave way. There was rushing water all through the area. Our fire pit became a small island. We watched astonishingly as we saw the two buckets we had down there swept away. We felt for sure we were going to see the barn and the fire pit float away as we witnessed the water gush under their foundations. It caused quite a bit of excitement around here.
We were even a bit panicky as it seemed things were out of control. We talked about it being a great visual of how the waters rose when Noah built the ark. How we could imagine the waters coming "up" from the earth as it seemed that was what was happening here in such a short period of time."In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, on the seventeenth day of the second month—on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. 12 And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.Genesis 7:11-12."
As the waters at the end of our driveway were also flooding over the road, all I could think about was that I knew I should have gone to the grocery store yesterday. Here we are going to be stranded in our home with "nothing" to eat. Still, Drew & the boys' main concern was for the fire pit. The anxiety kept building and would not wane. I was reminded of the One, who told the waters where to gather and the dry ground to appear. Genesis 1:9 I told the boys that God was still in control, and He has told these flood waters just how far to come. If we lose the fire pit, we will just replace it when we can. While my assurance calmed them a bit, there was still something deep inside that inner boy that said he needed to do something. I finally agreed for them to go outside and look without the barrier of the windows. I told them to only stand right outside our basement door on the rock. But, not before I scared them to death by telling them the danger if they took one wrong step and slipped and fell into the raging water (60 feet down a gradual hill :) ). They were quieted in their steps as the sound of the raging waters was so loud. Asa took this video.....
Creek Flooding by Asa from Nita Meadows on Vimeo.
Once I saw the reverence in their eyes for the magnitude of the situation, I went back upstairs. Asa came in a little later and said, "Mom, I got some great pictures." As I turned on his camera to look at his pictures, this was the first picture in the view screen. It was the last picture he had taken.
I was quieted as I was so humbled at the provision and shelter the Lord was providing for this red bird. Asa said he watched him several times fly away and come back. He said, "I think he was taking food to his family." God confirmed in my soul that He was in control and would surely take care of us during this rain storm and economic storm. Safe and dry in our home on the hill, I thought of the Lord being our strong tower, a shelter from the storm. (Proverbs 18:10)As I looked at the picture of the bird who was not fretting at all, I was reminded of how much more our Heavenly Father loves us. I stood motionless as I thought, "What a beautiful picture of God's provision and that He gave it to me at such an unexpected moment."
"Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Matthew 6 :26"
2 comments:
this is a great capture of so many things. bet CNN would love this. You always have amazed me at the insight you have for our Heavenly Father and the provisions He shows and gives us every day in our lives. Hope this gets to your blog. Mama
Hey Nita - my Sunday School class studied Matt. 6:26 today and I shared this story with them! :-)
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