Waking up this morning and seeing the devastating images coming out of my beloved Houston absolutely broke my heart. To see the city I had grown up in and raised to love completely underwater left me feeling more than a little destroyed. Knowing that tens of thousands of people are without power, homes, their belongings, everything they worked their whole lives for... there is just no way to process it. I think what makes it that much more terrifying is that the worst has yet to come. Hearing the Mayor literally telling people to write their name and social security number on their arms in preparation and being told that all we can do is wait it out, hoping that it will all be there when it's over. But I know Texans, especially Houstonians, we will come back stronger than ever. Here is a list of fifteen bible verses every Texan needs to hear right about now:
1. Psalm 57:1-2
Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills his purposes for me.
2. Psalm 46:1-3
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.
3. Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.
4. Proverbs 3:25-36
Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be your confidence and will keep your feet from being snared.
5. John 16:33
I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you have trouble and suffering, but have courage -- I have conquered the world.
6. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
7. 1 Peter 5:10
And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.
8. Thessalonians 5:11
Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.
9. Revelation 21:4
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things have passed away.
10. Revelation 2:10
Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution. Be faithful, I will give you life as your victor's crown.
11. Psalm 91:2
I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust."
12. Psalm 93:4
Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea -- the Lord on high is mighty.
13. Isaiah 43:2
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.
14. Nahum 1:7
The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in Him.
15. 2 Corinthians 5:1
For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
With the worst yet to come, we all need to keep our faith in the Lord and in one another. We need to lean on each other, support and help when we can, and be prepared for the long recovery process that will have to happen. Sending all my love to those in Houston and surrounding areas. God hears your prayers, have faith.
