YOU CAN RUN…BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Luke 6:47‑49

“I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

 

Mother Nature seems to be angry with our country. Whether it is significant snow storm, fantastic   flooding, terrible tornadoes or horrible hurricanes, we seem to be having tragedy after tragedy when it comes to the weather we are experiencing. Lives have been lost, people’s futures have changed dramatically, and physical damage has occurred beyond belief. 

 

I was born and raised in Oklahoma. I have seen the destruction that a tornado can do first hand. Once, when I was a young boy, my family and I visited a town south of us that had been hit hard by a tornado. Dozens of huge oak trees had been uprooted and tossed aside; cars and refrigerators were found suspended in the tops of trees and atop buildings. All sizes of pieces of homes, structures and material possessions were strewn around in haphazard fashion. As we drove through the town, my dad told stories of him seeing pieces of straw embedded in very old hardwood trees, a vinyl record that had cut into a telephone pole without breaking and barbed wire wound around a fencepost as if it were delicately placed there by a rancher. 

 

I remember as a young boy being awakened by my parents in the dead of night. I could hear the tornado siren going off at the fire station in our town and the radio and television communicating information about the approaching destruction. I saw bright lightning flashing like a tremendous strobe light outside and our windows would shake and I thought for sure they would break. We were always told never to stand near a window when a thunderstorm was pounding away outside. My mom and dad would carry my sisters and I, down into our cold, damp, musty cellar. It was hard to sleep down there, but often we managed to doze off and on through the noises of wind, rain and hail we could hear pummeling our poor house.

 

Our attempt at seeking safety was to be safe and to hide from the forces of nature that were wreaking havoc outside our buried fortress. We knew we were running from sure destruction, but prayed that God would protect us.

 

It is wise to prepare for a coming catastrophe, whether it is a tornado, flood, hurricane or storm. Preparations take many forms. Sometimes they are reinforcing structures we live in. Sometimes it is stockpiling food and supplies. Sometimes it is preparing mentally for the struggles that we are going to face us emotionally and physically.

 

It is also wise to prepare spiritually for what we know will happen…the RETURN OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR!. We do not know when this will occur, but we are sure it will take place. For some, Christ’s return will be destruction, for others, it will be reward.

 

We prepare for Christ’s return by seeking each day to live according to His word and by seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit. We must prepare our lives continually and consistently. We must prepare to be ready at all times for we never know when the hour of His return might be.

 

Are you seeking to be prepared? Have you stockpiled His word in your heart? Have you built up treasures in heaven or wasted your resources on worldly pleasures? Have you sought to tell others about the coming of the Lord? Have you warned those who are rebellious that destruction is on the horizon for them unless they turn from their ways? Let us pray that we prepare ourselves, our families and our country for the return of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

 

We must tell people that when it comes to the return of Christ, You can run, but you can’t hide!

 

2 Peter 3:10‑12

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed it’s coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.”