The Picture of Harvey
A child is resting contentedly in her mother’s embrace, not a sign of distress, or a hint of worry. The photo of a Houston Police SWAT officer carrying a woman and her baby is one of the most recognized pictures in the thick of the flooding brought forth by Hurricane Harvey. Amidst the raging flood water, the first responder carries both the baby and his mother to safety. The child is oblivious of the rescuer. All he knows and realizes is that his mother is holding on to him tightly. He is resting solely on the assurance that his mother is there for him.What a picture of how we live our Christian life sometimes.
It is, after all, a baby in that picture. No one would expect the baby to know who his true rescuer was. However, as a follower of Christ, are there things in our lives that we hold on to so tightly (like the baby to the mother) that they become our safety and our refuge, believing that it is THE thing that keeps us content? A job or career (that was me! Topic for another piece), a house, a spouse, a child, fame or fortune? But beneath it all, there is someone much more powerful holding on to us, treading on flooded ground. Oblivious to His hands, we are prone to trust in something that we think is giving us a false sense of security.
The good news is, God is such a merciful and forgiving God who loves us so relentlessly, so boundlessly, so unashamedly, even when we don’t realize it is Him who is holding on to us.
The Trip to Houston
Our small team of seven people from my church, New Life Gospel Church, felt the calling and was gathered in a matter of two days, packed up, and traveled to Houston to lend our helping hands. We were assigned to assist at a few houses owned by some brothers and sisters from a Chinese church in Katy, Texas. Katy was one of the hardest hit areas from the aftermath of Harvey. I was able to help at two of those flooded houses.By the time we got to the first house, most of the dry walls were already torn down, and out of my expectation, not an inch in the house was wet. (I was expecting a wet Chinese fish market feel plus the stench of mold). I got to help with tearing down more dry walls, as well as cleaning up a whole lot of debris and remanents from the dry walls.
The female owner of the house as I got to know, is a Ph.D. who just started a new job two days before the flood swamped their house. Life certainly did not go as she expected. She was saturated with anxiety and restlessness, uncertain of how her family was going to get through this loss. Not knowing how to comfort her, I could only stress that there is hope for her. In fact, the house spoke for itself when I discovered a wall nook inside her house, right above part of the dry wall that was dismantled. It says, “If God brings you to it, He will see you through it.”
The female owner of the house as I got to know, is a Ph.D. who just started a new job two days before the flood swamped their house. Life certainly did not go as she expected. She was saturated with anxiety and restlessness, uncertain of how her family was going to get through this loss. Not knowing how to comfort her, I could only stress that there is hope for her. In fact, the house spoke for itself when I discovered a wall nook inside her house, right above part of the dry wall that was dismantled. It says, “If God brings you to it, He will see you through it.”
Indeed, God is with her family in this storm, despite her fear and frustration. It may not be obvious at this moment, but I pray that she will see the hands of God through all this misery.“If God brings you to it, He will see you through it.”
The following day, we went to another house. Now this house felt more like a swamp, with black mold in every corner. The stench was repulsive, needless to say. That was the condition close to what I was expecting before coming down to Houston. The difference between the previous house and this one was that this house has a three-door garage, and inside the garage was two dead cars plus massive amounts of books and old toys that were previously drenched in the filthy flood water.
I put myself to task – ridding of these books and toys that had become obsolete.
I put myself to task – ridding of these books and toys that had become obsolete.
As I was dumping these books into trash bags, the female owner of the house came over and greeted me. Dread was evident on her face as she inspected the books I was removing, and she almost choked up when she said to me, “These books were my ‘wealth.'”
“These books were my wealth” – meaning my possession, my pride, my purpose. In a matter of two days, her “wealth” degenerated from treasure to trash. She was deeply lamenting the loss of her treasure trove. As it turned out, she is an educator, having worked in Alief ISD for many years.
“These books were my wealth” – meaning my possession, my pride, my purpose. In a matter of two days, her “wealth” degenerated from treasure to trash. She was deeply lamenting the loss of her treasure trove. As it turned out, she is an educator, having worked in Alief ISD for many years.
At the end of the day, all the books along with the toys were gone, plus the molded dry wall behind them. Only a very small collection of her books was spared.
A Weaned Child
Like the baby leaning on her mother in the flood, unaware of the first responder carrying the both of them, how prone are we to lean on objects like books and knowledge, thinking they are our saviors. How vulnerable are we to lose the things we think are our safety net, in a matter of days, hours or seconds?“But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content” (Psalm 131:2).
May we all learn to be calm in the midst of the storm like the weaned child, and be constantly aware of the ONE who is our ultimate refuge and shelter, leaning on HIM the Jehovah Jireh, the author and finisher of our faith.
