Observations On An Ice Storm - A Parable

On Wednesday morning, January 28, most of us in Hardin County woke up to the sad reality that we were without power. Dark hallways, frigid indoor temperatures, and dead appliances served as somber testaments to the fact that our homes had no electricity. All of us have endured a temporary loss of electricity before, but few were prepared for the extent of “roughing it” that we would have to endure. Kentucky’s meteorological misfortunes have earned it the dubious distinction of being featured in a TIME magazine article*. Journalist S. James Snyder reports that the aftermath of the recent ice storms is impressive from both a statistical and personal standpoint. He reports that “Gov. Steve Beshear described the fallout from last week's ice storm as the state's largest-ever natural disaster,”** as 700,000 homes and businesses were deprived of power as a result of the ice storm. As of this writing, seven days after the storm, Kentucky power companies report that there are still in excess of 200,000 customers who have yet to see power restored.*** On a recent trip to Wal-Mart, I saw first-hand evidence of the extent to which this event has affected people: batteries and flashlights of any appreciable size, camping stoves, lanterns, propane tanks, candles and corded phones were scarcely to be found. The proportions of the storm’s impact have been both numerically and geographically impressive as people from Arkansas to Illinois have had to cope with the aftermath.

This last week has also seen profound personal drama associated with the advent of ice. The Associated Press today reported that the Kentucky death toll attributed to the storm had risen to 24. On a more pedestrian note, Snyder reports that some local officials have been enormously frustrated in their attempts to address the week’s difficulties:

“Perhaps no one in the state was more frustrated than Randell Smith, the emergency management director of Grayson County in western Kentucky, who told the Associated Press Friday that they had yet to receive any aid from either the Federal Emergency Management Agency or the Red Cross. As for the 25 National Guardsman who had arrived in his county, Smith said they did not have any of the equipment needed to clear away fallen trees. 'Disgusted' was the word that the mayor of Leitchfield, Ky., William Thomason, used to describe his frustration with state and federal officials.” **

These are merely a small example of abnormal stresses bringing out the worst in people, as they try to cope with a situation where questions far outnumber answers, and where, what few answers there are, seem to satisfy no one. Complaining, confusion, and frustration are standard ingredients in a situation of this kind, but there has been a positive side as well. Neighbors have opened their homes to one another and have reached out to help each other. Many discovered new found space for conversation and reflection in a world temporarily cleansed from the din of electronic media.

As profound as the statistical and personal impact of this storm have been, I believe that there is an even greater impression that God wants us to receive from this episode. First, He wants us to see how powerless we really are to control the world around us. Most of us had plans for the last seven days that scarcely involved kerosene and chainsaws. There were things to be bought, meetings to be made, events to be attended, and programs to be watched. For the most part, we did not question our ability to accomplish what we set out to do a week ago, and we believed that our plans had the air of certainty about them. In this, however, we were wrong. The ice on my power lines may as well have had this statement written across it, “People can make all kinds of plans, but only the Lord's plan will happen.” (Proverbs 19.21 [NCV]) Our lack of electrical power served as a poignant parable of our lack of power in a far more important area: the circumstances of our future. The splintered remains of the trees in my front yard may as well bear James’ words “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go … and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring … Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” (James 4.13-15 [ESV]) It is helpful for us to be reminded that, as children of God, we can never have too much humility. Though it might be disconcerting to an unbeliever to be confronted with the realization that he does not hold the future, we are to reckon our security upon a different scale. Because we understand that the One who is ordering this world toward its appointed end is both the most powerful and the most benevolent being in the universe, we realize that our future is secure in the hands of God. This is a realization that produces humility.

The second truth that I believe God wants us to be cognizant of is that He has blessed us tremendously through civilized society. A disaster like this one demonstrates how much energy is necessary to keep the world civilized. It takes enormous amounts of money, cooperation, and coordination to engineer an electrical grid. We are benefitting from the functioning and funding of government and business institutions at various levels. The prevalence of these institutions in our experience can tempt us to take them for granted, but just reflect for a moment on how much more difficult this past week would have been without the ability to receive assistance from utility companies from other states or without road crews who are trained and designated to assist us during times of distress. The fact that our social institutions function as well as they do is a blessing for which we ought to be legitimately thankful, and our thanks should principally be directed heavenward. "Lord, God of our ancestors, you are the God in heaven. You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. You have power and strength, so no one can stand against you.” (2 Chronicles 20.6 [NCV]) God uses institutions like businesses, families, societies, and governments to mercifully benefit us and to keep our lives from being as hard as they might be otherwise. This is a realization that engenders thankfulness.

There are certainly other truths that can be gleaned from times of unusual deprivation, but for the moment I am content to pray that God will use this ice storm to make us more humble and more thankful people. According to God those are precisely the kind of people that He uses to bless others.

* article can be viewed at: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1876304,00.html
** see article above.
*** Further details at: http://www.wave3.com/Global/story.asp?S=9786584