About a week ago (while we were away at Church Camp), we had a crazy storm hit our little rural community.  "Plough winds", along with heavy rain and some hail hit us hard, and left a trail of uprooted trees, a few overturned granaries, and a power outage due to trees falling on power lines.  Our backyard play structure was "canopied" with large fallen trees, making it a true jungle gym!  Branches and leaves covered our property, and trees blocked roads throughout the area.

We know that things can change in a moment - that nothing we have is indestructible - but it's still a bit of a shock to see how changed the landscape of some yards became in such a short time.  We are beyond grateful that there was almost no damage done to any houses, and only a few outbuildings were affected, and especially thankful that no one was hurt.  

We (and all our neighbours), will be cleaning up and making firewood for some time, and as we do this, we can hopefully focus on the fact that God cares for us through every storm, that only the things of eternal value will endure, and that we should never take anything for granted.  We need to hold loosely in our hands the "things" in our lives, but hold fast and cherish our faith, our relationships, and our everlasting hope in Christ.

We know that, according to God's word, the things of this world will all pass away, and this has been a little reminder of the transitory nature of our lives here on earth.  We need to put our trust in the One who holds it all, never changes, never fails, and is the same yesterday, today and forever!