Disaster Recovery

As we recognize the one year anniversary of when Hurricane Sandy hit, I am reminded about how small our worlds really are.  When a disaster strikes many of us are great about sending money, supplies, and prayers their way.  We are good about getting the word out and asking people to help be a blessing to those in need.  We are good about this for a month, perhaps longer if it is still at the forefront of the news.  But more often than not, we go back to our normal lives and think the issue is taken care of or forget about what has happened all together.  As sad as this can be, it is the norm.  People tend to stay concerned about the small world that surrounds them.  We can be pretty myopic in our view of the world around us until something jars us out of our small world to see something bigger, and even that is often short lived.

There were two natural disasters I faced while growing up in California that changed my perspective on natural disasters forever.  The first one was the Landers/Big Bear Earthquakes in 1992.  The 7.3 magnitude quake that hit Landers remains the second biggest quake ever to hit Southern California (the biggest was a 7.4).  That first quake was not the end of the damage as a 6.5 magnitude aftershock hit Big Bear just three hours later.  Even though I was close enough to feel both of these quakes in a very real way – too real if you ask me.  It was not my feeling them that impacted me, but seeing the devastation first hand.  My family was on vacation during these 2 quakes and driving home, we had to drive through some areas that were very hard hit by these quakes.  I will never forget what that devastation looked like, and knowing that what I saw was only a small piece of it.

The second natural disaster was the Cedar Fire in San Diego in 2003.  This fire remains the largest fire recorded in California history.  I lived in San Diego at the time, and I remember the eerie and almost apocalyptic feel as the city was completely shut down and smoke and ash filled the air.  There was a feeling of desperation and hopelessness as the fire continued to grow, the sun was blocked out by smoke, and over 2,200 homes burned.  I worked in a regional denominational office at the time of the fire and was asked to help head up some of the relief efforts of the local churches. I will never forget meeting families who had lost everything.  As weird as it sounds, one thing that struck me was that they were just like me!  We often think that something like that can’t happen to us, but talking with these families made me realize that it can happen to me.  If I had lived just a few miles further away, I would have lost everything too.  My heart broke for them, and I have never wished for lots of money until that moment, when I wanted to give it all to them, to help fix what the fire had broken and destroyed. 

These two events shook me out of my small world to see how devastating natural disasters really can be, and how long communities are impacted.  The devastation doesn’t just go away in a few weeks or even months.  Many times there is lot of red tape, regulations, and a shortage of resources and help to make that a reality.  When you lose everything you have to a natural disaster, be it fire, quake, or water, the hurt and fear often continues even when your physical surrounds return to a ‘new normal.’  It is in those times, when the rest of the world has gone back to their small worlds that the church must reach out.  It is in the brokenness, devastation, and dark places that the light of Christ still needs to shine, even months and years later.  

On this anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, please pray for them.  Pray for those are still lost and trying to find a way to cope after losing everything and knowing that their homes are still just mere shells of broken wood and water damage.  Pray for the physical rebuilding of the area, but also for the emotional pain and suffering that doesn't just go away when the physical buildings are replaced or moved.  Pray for those who are trying to help but can often get mired down in red tape and lack of resources.  Pray that God’s presence and peace would be felt there in a new and fresh way.  Lord, hear our prayer.

God bless, Rev. Liz Arakelian, www.LivingHopeEC.org