Read: Lamentations 3:1-66, Hebrews 1:1-14, Psalm 102:1-28, Proverbs 26:21-22

The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words. I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. (Lamentations 3:19-23)

Relate: It seems like a lifetime ago that Sandy blew through New York. It seems like yesterday. I remember the nervous anticipation we felt here in Binghamton as forecasts right up to a few hours before were predicting it was heading right for us. It was September ’11 when Irene blew through town and we still weren’t fully recovered from that. Another one, the third major flooding in 6 years, looked to be on the way.

Instead the coast between Atlantic City and New York City endured the brunt of the damage. The cost of the damage totaled in the billions, millions were without power, thousands lost their homes, hundreds died as a result of the storm including dozens in NYC during the worst of the surge. As bad as it was here in the states, places like Jamaica, Cuba, and the Bahamas had it worse.

Since then, from cyclones off the coast of Japan, to Chinese earthquakes in Lushan and Dinxi, to riots in Stockholm, to fires in Kolkata, to protests in Turkey, shootings in Connecticut, and civil war in Syria, disasters happen. Some are man made and some are nature flexing its muscles. Some are as personal as the loss of a father or a friend, some are making the news on CNN or MSNBC. All are tragic and devastatingly life changing for those involved. All are more than worthy of our compassion, our time, and our prayers.

React: Jeremiah was writing a cry to God in the midst of one such storm. For a God fearing Jew, Jerusalem and the Temple defined his identity. Now both were a smoldering ruin after the natural disaster named Babylon came storming through. More than that, it had been his home for decades. Now all that remained was a ghost town still in the process of burning itself to the ground. Hundreds of his friends and neighbors were dead. Hundreds more were carried away as prisoners of war to live out the rest of their lives as refugees in a strange land that spoke a strange tongue. Those that remained were now homeless survivors who would have to rebuild in a famine and war torn land.

Yet in spite of all this Jeremiah can say that the love of God has no end. No matter how bleak things may seem, His mercies never cease. No matter how violently the world he knew had been shaken, Jeremiah could sing that God’s faithfulness is still great. In the midst of his grief, this prophet had tapped into a truth that is just as true today as it was back then. A year has passed since that day. A new day has dawned. And God is still on the throne.

Respond: 

This video was pulled from a promotional from SHINE HUMANITY, one of many organizations dedicated to offering help and hope where and when it is needed most. Rather than just praying for those who have experienced a devestating tragedy like Sandy, pray and then get up and put some wheels to your prayers. I normally give to:

World Vision and
Project Rescue.

Convoy of Hope and
Samaritan’s Purse are also worthy organizations I firmly believe in and that were (and still are) major players in the rescue and relief operations after hurricane Sandy.