The Power in "no power"

Praise
We have a lot to be thankful for this week! We made it safely through Ike with only some limbs down and a part of our fence down. I never would have thought it possible to be thankful for plywood that cost $30 per sheet, but boy was I thankful on Friday night as the hurricane force winds blew through, and we were safe and sound with our family in our bedroom which was the only room where we boarded the windows due to a shortage of plywood and time. We were without power for less than 2 days. God was good to us again!

Prayer Request
There are many people who lost their entire homes in the areas near the coast. We even have friends who live within a few miles of us in the suburbs north of Houston who have trees that fell through their roof. A lot of our friends still don't have power. Gas, ice and perisiable foods are hard to come by. Please pray for all the people affected by Ike. Specifically, I would ask for you to pray for the Ekdahl's and my friend Debbie who both had trees go through their roof during the hurricane. Also, my brother-in-law's parents who lived on the west end of Galveston. They still have not been able to get back on the island to see if they have a home left.

I got an email from a friend this morning regarding the aftermath of Ike. She says it so well, that I asked if I could share with everyone in blog land. I think it reminds us that God can use every situation to his glory.

The Power in "no power"
"My home town is hurting. And so is almost every other town nearby. We've collectively endured an enormous storm, and it packed a hard punch. Not a knockout blow. Not quite. But close.

When 2.8 million people lose power in one city in one night - well, that's big. In fact, sources are claiming that Hurricane Ike was the cause of the largest power outage in the history of the great state of Texas .

On Friday night Ike was downright wicked. Scary. The limbs of trees with trunks as big around as my waist were twisted off like grapes from a stem. One huge tree close to our house was split near the base of its trunk: rendered roughly in two, with one half landing on one house, and one half on another.

The morning after the storm, my front door and porch were plastered nearly solid with green leaves that looked as if they'd been run through a food processor. Hardly any of them were whole. What the winds left resembled fresh green mulch more than it did discernible foliage.

And now, four days later, the question heard most frequently in conversations between friends, colleagues and neighbors is "Do you have power?" (Second only to "Where have you found gas, or ice?") Because without power, even the most ordinary-seeming tasks must be re-thought. No air. No lights. No cable or internet, or phones.

Transistor radios are in vogue again. So are paper fans, brooms, early bedtimes and board games. Neighbors are out on their porches, not hibernating inside, seldom seen. Children are outside playing and not indoors with their Wii's. A few weeks ago, before the storm, I had decided I would meet and get to know my neighbors. Sunday, we had our neighbors, Jan and Sandy, over for dinner, they were tired of turkey sandwiches. We had a nice visit, they are from England and knew nothing of hurricanes. We even enjoyed a movie thanks to my wonderful fiance who bought a generator before the storm hit. I'm hoping to see them again soon.

What I've decided in the aftermath of September's thrashing storm is this: there's a special power in "no power." It's a low, humming, steady power, and I hope when the lights come on, it stays. It's a power that has meekness at it's heart, and I like it - even though I wouldn't have chosen this particular method of delivery.

My lights are still out - along with two-thirds of the city. But I'm seeing more clearly every day." - anonymous

But he said to me, "My power is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (II Corinthians 12:9-10)