We belong to a wonderful family – the family of God. When there are happy events or achievements, we greatly rejoice and celebrate.  When there are sad occurrences or failures, we feel disappointed and share the pain.  Hurricane Beryl was a catastrophic event which impacted all our lives on July 3. As it approached, there was an air of anticipation, anxiety and even fear. It landed, did what hurricanes do and went on its way. Soon after, there was enormous relief for some, giving thanks to God for ‘sparing us once again’. But in great amazement we became aware of the destruction that had been – immeasurable loss of life, property, dislocation – resulting in despair and much grief. Amazingly in the midst of all this disaster, some were bold to say ‘thank God, it could have been worse’.

There are always lessons from these experiences.  This is only the start of the hurricane season and we have been warned of how frequent and destructive they can be because of climate change.  We therefore cannot let our guard down and must always be mindful of those who need special attention – the children, elderly, the physically and mentally challenged, the homeless and homebound.  We need to inform ourselves about the environment and how greatly we have damaged what God has given to us and what we can do and encourage especially our children to do, to slow the destruction that is unfolding.

We are also aware that hurricanes are only one of the natural occurrences over which we have no control.  There are earthquakes, droughts and floods.  We must do what we can to ameliorate the impact; regularly check the security of our homes and those of our loved ones; seek information on what to do in case of an earthquake; engage in water harvesting; ensure that we have clear modes and frequent communication with family members; be safety conscious and look out for each other.

An important role for the family is to help those whose lives have been impacted by some hazardous event.  For our help and support to be effective, we need to be guided by credible information. Our Diocese is one key source of information especially concerning our church families that have been impacted.  Let us also be mindful of our clergy and church workers who have themselves been affected by this event and have the added responsibility to bring relief and consolation to their congregants.  There is likely to be great dislocation in some of our schools which have been tremendously damaged, and we may have to explore ways to help our educators and students navigate their uncertain path at the new school year. We know, however, that God’s mercy and grace will cover us through all our trials and tribulations.  We continue to pray without ceasing.

With Christ in the vessel, we can ride out any storm.

Karlene Reid