Ezekiel 47:1–9,12
John 5:1–18
Psalm 46:1–8

My twin brother and I were born the day after Mount St. Helens erupted, and it is the family joke that the eruption of the mountain coincided with my mother’s water breaking. My parents paid a visit to the mountain in 2005, right after my twenty-fifth birthday, and got ashes from the volcano for my twin brother and me.

Documentaries on the eruption bring to mind the power of God and how that power is played out in the natural world. The psalmist speaks of such power in today’s psalm as they describe “the earth [being] moved, and … the mountains [being] toppled into the depths of the sea; its waters [raging] and [foaming], and … mountains [trembling] at its tumult.” (verses 2-3) I have experienced large earthquakes and been out on the ocean in stormy seas. It never fails to amaze me that the face of the earth can change so much so quickly.

We face many things in our country that cause us to be fearful. As I read the latest headline on Skagit Breaking or see the latest tweet from Donald Trump, it is easy to lose hope. At these times, I recall psalms like this one and take comfort that God can work amid all these things in our upside-down world. If God can change the face of a mountain as happened in May of 1980, how small are the worries that I have in comparison?

How wonderful to be loved by a God described as “our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble!” (verse 1)

Lord, you manifest your power so amazingly in the natural world. Help us to remember that You love us and want to be our refuge when we face adversity.
-Jen McCabe