FACING DANGER AND DISASTER (PART 1 - PREPARATIONS)

              FACING DANGER AND DISASTER (PART 1 - PREPARATIONS)

  A short while ago, I was watching on YouTube Storm Chasers who were trying to follow and film a massive tornado. They were three young men in what looked like a smaller SUV. They were understandably excited; however, the tornado took an unexpected turn and caught them. The film continued recording while they were apparently being tossed and rolled. One of them kept praying out loud in panic desperation over and over, "Help us Jesus, Help us Lord Jesus, in Jesus'  name!!!" When the car finally came to a rest,  and actually right side up, the three young men got out and were very badly shaken. One seemed traumatized, but all were alive and showing minimal physical harm. The car looked totaled and came to rest by a body of water. It was miraculous. I followed other storm chasers of the same tornado, and it was reported that some were killed. The Bible says that, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13. Typically, we apply that Scripture for the salvation of our souls, which is how it should be and is the most important application of prayer, but it does not negate the promise for any other possible needs. This young fellow did call out to the Lord loudly, boldly, and earnestly, and they were spared, where others who were following the same storm were not. Let's look at this topic in the Scriptures. God's Word has a lot to say about it. 

 I am writing this not so much that we who are followers of Jesus get to find a way to escape every danger and hardship, but that we find our place in Christ to fulfill the will of God our Father in the "whirlwind and the storm". God has designed us to live in this world and, as Christians, to be the salt and light for His glory in a world full of darkness and suffering. By faith, we bring the hope of Christ to those who are perishing. He is also with us as we pass through the fire and the water if that is what He has called us to; that is the safest place to be, and He is glorified! ("When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon you." Isaiah 43:2)

 Psalm 91 is the pinnacle expression of God's mighty deliverance for us from dangers and disasters. Notice the expression of faith that He was responding to: "He that dwells in the secret place of the Most High...He is my Refuge and my Fortress, my God, in Him will I trust...because you have made the Lord -  your Habitation...Because he has set his love on Me...because he has known My name, he shall call upon Me, and I will answer him... " Psalm 91:1-16

-FIRST 

-CAUSES OF DANGERS AND DISASTERS

-OUR REASONABLE RESPONSIBILITY

-GETTING OUR FEARS IN PROPER PERSPECTIVE

-THREE CRITICAL WAYS TO FACE DANGERS

-WHAT ABOUT DISASTERS THAT COME SUDDENLY WITHOUT APPARENT WARNING?

-WHERE WAS GOD IN ALL OF THIS? WHY DID IT HAVE TO HAPPEN?

-DOES GOD WARN US? 

-HOW COME SOME PEOPLE GET AWAY, AND OTHERS DO NOT?

 -FACING THE THREAT OF WAR 

-THOSE CALLED TO ARMS AND DANGER

-FINAL NOTES

 FIRST

 IN PREPARING FOR DANGERS AND DISASTERS, the first and most important step before anything else is to establish our relationship with God through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23. Then you are ready to face anything regardless of the outcome, and you are also ready for eternity. Have you made your peace with God? We can talk about facing and hopefully escaping dangers and disasters all we want, but we must realize that the Lord can call us anytime. He has given us no set date. "And it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." Hebrews 9:27. Jesus Christ died on a cross for your sins and rose from the dead three days later so that you can be forgiven, cleansed, and reconciled to God. If you believe on Jesus, confess Him, and surrender your life to Him, you shall be saved. What will it be? Today is the day of salvation. Let's do so now, then find a Christian or pastor, and ask him what to do next! 

  When we hear of terrible and terrifying disasters that strike suddenly and often without apparent warning, we might think, "If God is in control, where was He?" or  "How come He didn't warn us ahead of time?" "We did not want war!" Let's consider this a little.

"For man also knows not his time: as the fish that are taken in an evil net, and as birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falls suddenly upon them." Ecclesiastes 9:12

CAUSES OF DANGERS AND DISASTERS

THE FORCES OF NATURE IN ACTION

  We have all heard that earthquakes are typically caused by the movement and shifting of tectonic plates beneath the Earth. Some are not only extremely devastating and deadly, but they can also cause tsunamis that strike coasts with destructive force hundreds of miles away. Then there are the volcanoes, which can unleash forces that wipe out everything in their path, and more! There are also flash floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, diseases, plagues, and famine.  Much is simply the functioning of the planet and its maintenance, but in all of it we desperately need HIS MERCY if we are in the event. We are so vulnerable. 

THE HUMAN ELEMENT

 Another constant concern for all people is the threat of war and other human threats. As time has moved ahead, so has man's ability to destroy. Human danger is an issue at every level, locally, nationally, and internationally. However, some of the dangers we create may be quite unintentional (hopefully), such as human error like pollution, engineering disasters, carelessness, and so on. With all these dangers, what is our hope and where is our safety?

GOD'S JUDGMENT

 MAY INCLUDE ANY OF THESE, BUT HIS HAND IS IN ALL OF THEM. "...the Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet." Nahum 1:3, "The earth is the Lord's. and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." Psalm 24:1 

OUR REASONABLE RESPONSIBILITY: WE BUILD, WE DIG IN, WE PREPARE 

  Living on this planet, we have learned to take these things into consideration and have developed and are developing measures to be prepared for and to protect ourselves from as many of these dangers as possible. In the parable of 'Building Our House on a Firm Foundation' (Matthew 7:24), although Jesus is using that illustration to instruct us on the importance of building our lives on the firm foundation of His Word, it gives us the basic insight for practical living in a turbulent world.  As in the NATURAL, so in the spiritual, the storms of life will come, and we should diligently make the corresponding preparations (meaning we do have a part to play in our success and survival so that we can prevail in them). Throughout the Scriptures of the Bible, there are a multitude of promises and instructions both for this life and in the life to come for those who put their trust in Him. I want to be careful here not to promote presumptuous expectations where the Almighty Himself did not guarantee, but, on the other hand, not miss what He does promise. Each individual must establish where they stand with Him and to what extent we trust Him, but know this: the final decision is His, and we can trust Him in that. Our responsibility is to determine what He expects of us, and then simply obey. One thing I do want to emphasise is that every time a storm cloud looms in the distance (or suddenly appears overtop of us), we do not automatically expect the worst and helplessly resign ourselves to 'fate'. On the other hand, nor do we presumptuously assume that we need not concern ourselves. Our Father and God created the Universe; everything is His, and we are His children. We always have hope, possibilities, and responsibilities in Him.

"God is our Refuge and Strength, a very present Help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, and though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its swelling pride." Psalm 46:1-3

"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken." Luke 21:25-26

  GETTING OUR FEARS IN PROPER PERSPECTIVE

  All people everywhere and throughout time struggle with fears of every kind: health, disasters, dangers from people, nature, famine, and even supernatural threats. Many fears are reasonable.  But as followers of Jesus, we actually are to embrace only one fear: "The Fear of the Lord." All dangers and threats of any kind are fully subject to the will and power of the CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE, Who happens to be our Lord and Savior.

 COME TO THE REALIZATION THAT WE ARE VULNERABLE

 "But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, 'With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.'" Matthew 19:26

"Thus says the Lord, 'Cursed is the man that trusts in mankind, and makes flesh his strength, and whose heart turns away from the Lord.'" Jeremiah   17:5, "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament/expanse shows His handiwork." Psalm 19:1, "When I consider the heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; what is man, that You are mindful of him, and the son of man, that You visit him?" Psalm 8:3-4, "I will lift up my eyes unto the hills, from whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord, which made heaven and earth." Psalm 121:1-2

  As followers of Jesus, we are to shift everything over to the Lord, including our fears. As I have gotten older, I have recently realized that even some of what I thought was faith in Jesus was actually a hidden confidence in my assumed abilities and self-sufficiency. When the parameters of those began to diminish, a sense of vulnerability began to grow. I found myself wondering how much I actually trust the Lord for my needs and help. This is a good place to be in regarding our faith. "For we would not, brothers, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life. But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raises the dead." 2 Corinthians 1:8-9                                  When facing the storms of life, we want to head into them by faith in Jesus and come out the other end with greater faith, praise, and thankfulness. As with Paul, we will be able to inspire and encourage others who are or will be going through the same or similar things. "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

NEXT -  THREE CRITICAL WAYS TO FACE DANGERS