Earthquake!

I don’t know if I can adequately describe how absolutely freaky it was to be shaken awake this morning. At around 4:38 A.M. a 5.4 magnitude earthquake hit the Midwest with the epicenter located in southern Illinois near the Indiana state line. Living in northwest Indiana, I felt the temblor for about a full minute before it finally subsided.

At first, not having ever experienced an earthquake, I didn’t know what to think. The only thing that my mind could logically think (at 4:38 in the morning) is that a tornado had dropped out of the sky and was directly upon us, that’s how violently the house shook. However, my windows were open and I couldn’t detect any wind, nor did I see anything moving outside.

With my bed moving and the closet door rattling loudly, it slowly began to dawn on me that it was the earth that was moving. I was petrified, but more than that, for the minute that I was engaged with what was happening, I couldn’t move. And all I could think was that I needed to get to the children.

Unbelievably, my son slept through it. In watching local news reports coming out of Chicago, he wasn't the only one who missed the earthquake. A few also slept right through it, or if they were out walking or driving apparently never felt a thing. My husband, on the road in Ohio, missed it all.

After the quake, as I laid in bed thinking the event over (and praying I didn’t have to endure aftershocks), two unsettling thoughts occurred to me.

There’s so much I want to protect my children from;
I won’t be able to protect them from everything.

As my children slept peacefully in their beds, they weren’t even aware of the potential danger that beset them. Such is the reality of raising children to the Lord. As parents, we try to cover all the bases, but in spite of our diligence and focused effort in protecting them, will our children recognize danger when it confronts them? Will they know how to react, perhaps even how to confront it?

The earthquake was a jolting reminder of how absolutely dependent upon God I must be. My children’s salvation and walk of faith is greatly influenced by my obedience to teach them according to God’s Word, but I do not have the power to think or act for them. Only by encouraging them to place their trust in Jesus and to willingly and lovingly follow Him will they be able to offset the presence of the danger all around them.

I pray for the strength and the wisdom to carry on God’s work, and for enough faith that by placing my children at His feet I can truly walk away without fear.