Lessons from an Earthquake: The Voice

The following is from a BMW who works in Nepal, and was there during the earthquakes on April 25th and May 12th.

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Sometimes the greatest lessons are learned through the greatest hardships. The refining fires of trials bring out things that would never have come to the surface otherwise.

Such is the situation I found myself in when my world began to shake. It's almost like the earthquakes loosened the rocky soil of my heart causing landslides of filth to pour forth to the surface, ready to be cleaned out so that I can be more like Christ. I don't want to forget these precious lessons.

"And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice."

1 Kings 19:11-12 

In this passage, Elijah had just endured a major trial. He was exhausted, burned out, and ready to quit. The Lord, in His patience, mercy and compassion, ministered to Elijah by feeding him and giving him time to rest. But now the Lord was going to teach Elijah a few things.

Elijah was convinced he was all alone in this battle. He thought there was no one else. And he thought this was the end. He felt like a failure and it seemed God wasn't working. If God was working, why wasn't there anyone else to fight the battle with Elijah? Why didn't God just wipe Ahab and Jezebel off the planet? Just send down fire like He did on Mount Carmel or swallow them up by opening the ground in an earthquake like He did those who opposed Moses?

He Is Working

As I read this passage, I had to admit I was guilty of the same mentality. No, not that I want fire and judgment and earthquakes. But that I want God to do things big and visible and obvious and...

We all like to see immediate and powerful results. I would love it if the people's hearts here were softened so much from this tragedy that hundreds or even thousands opened their hearts to the Gospel and turned from their idolatry. I would love to report dozens of salvations and how people are just begging for truth as a result of their world being turned upside down because of this tragedy. I want wind and earthquakes and fire!

Delivery of shelter kits

Yes, sometimes God does use wind and earthquakes and fire. But sometimes His work is still and quiet. A whisper. We are tempted to think He isn't working. We are tempted to think nothing is being done because we don't see it.

What Elijah didn't see... 7000 prophets who had not bowed the knee to Baal. He also didn't see the work the Lord still had for him to do. And he didn't see the blessing the Lord was about to send his way with Elisha. God was working. And we must trust that God is working in hearts here in Nepal. Yes, some hearts we are able to see have softened. Some hearts have hardened. Some people are asking why. Others are blaming Christians. We must trust the Lord of the harvest, that He is working in hearts with His still small voice doing things that we may not see.

Are you trusting that God is working even when you cannot see immediate results?

Are you making expectations on how He should do His work?

Escaping the Chaos

As I looked at this passage again, I realized something else. Elijah was in the midst of chaos... wind that tore up a mountain??? An earthquake??? Fire??? Chaos. Can you imagine the noise? I can imagine the earthquake noise. When the earthquake happened here, it was loud and rumbling. The whole earth groaned. Buildings collapsed and rubble crashed down. Metal twisted and doors cracked. People screamed.

And after the earthquake? Still chaos.

But through this passage I am reminded there is an oasis from the chaos in the still small voice. I imagine it was practically a whisper. His voice. He wasn't in the chaos, but He could be heard in spite of the chaos. So each day, Oh how precious it was, to take some time apart to listen to His voice by getting alone with Him in the Word and in prayer! How easy it is to neglect the still small voice in the midst of chaos! And how easy it is to think we will not be able to hear Him among the noise. But if we are listening, He is there... whispering. Helping. Seeking and strengthening. We must not let chaos and noise distract us from the voice.

Getting food to hungry villages

For me, all the emergency ministry that came afterwards was the chaos. It was necessary things, but it was things that would have to be done at a moments notice. It was things outside my comfort zone and my schedule driven nature. It was seeing the devastation and hearing the earthquake alarm and the 120+ aftershocks rattling every nerve. But how I treasured escaping the chaos by getting alone with Him! His still small voice stilled my noisy, fearful, and broken heart.

Are you taking the time to escape your chaos... your earthquake?

Are you spending time with Him in His Word listening for His voice?

Hearing the Voice

The voice of the Lord came to Elijah again. "What doest thou here, Elijah?"

Has God ever asked you that? "What are you doing here? What is your purpose?"

I have asked myself that these past three weeks... Why am I here? Sometimes we need these questions to help us refocus. It is tempting to get wrapped up, especially now, in thinking we are here for ministry. Yes, we do ministry while we are here, but that's not my purpose. My purpose isn't to get food to starving people or build shelters for the homeless or even start churches and teach children's class. My purpose is to glorify God. In every task He sets before me, I am to glorify Him. In every situation that arises, I must glorify Him. That certainly shortens my to-do list. Can you imagine posting THAT to-do list on the fridge each day? One item... glorify God.

Why are you where you are?

Is His voice whispering to you to help you refocus on your purpose?

Ask yourself... "What doest thou here, ____________?"

Lessons from an Earthquake

The following is from a BMW working in the country of Nepal. Nepal was devastated by a 7.8 earthquake on April 25th. On May 12th, another large 7.4 earthquake struck creating panic and additional destruction to an already hurting people.

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"And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said,

Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee." 1 Kings 19:7

The Lord came to Elijah when Elijah had given up. Elijah was drained. Finished. Burnout had set in. He was at the end of himself in the midst of a fierce spiritual and physical battle.

Now more than ever I can relate to these words: "The journey is too great for thee..."

Yes. Yes, it is.

Woman in a village that had run out of food

The first earthquake hit on April 25th. And two and a half weeks later, just as everyone was beginning to feel confident... safe... on May 12th the second large earthquake came.

The journey is to great for thee...

With every aftershock, nerves are rattled. Sometimes I just wish life could go back to normal.

The journey is too great for thee...

Twisted, collapsing building in the hardest hit area of Kathmandu, the capital

Sometimes rising up early to prepare food for my husband and relief workers for the day... going to bed late because of preparing bedrooms and meals and towels for showers for relief workers and missionaries who needed a place to stay for the night all while trying to keep up with daily mommy and wife duties...

The journey is to great for thee...

Medical relief team at work in a remote village

And traveling on the roads, seeing the devastation... feeling so powerless to fix it all. Emotionally draining. Spiritually trying. Physically exhausting.

The journey is too great for...well, for ME!

Two large earthquakes? Wasn't one enough? Especially with all the aftershocks!

"And the angel of the LORD came again the SECOND time, and touched him, and said,

Arise and eat..."

Transporting a sick 97 year old man from a village who survived the earthquake of 1934 and 2015

Sometimes we joke that this isn't what we signed up for as missionaries, but honestly, it is. We knew coming here that the journey was too great for us even without earthquakes and devastation. I can't leave now. My heart is here. Our calling is here. And the people need us now more than ever. But the journey is too great for me!

How sweet it has been to have the Lord sustain us, to come along side and say, "Arise and eat." He knows our limitations. He knows we are just flesh. But He wants us to experience His strength and grace. It is sufficient. And He never told Elijah He would make the journey easier. He said, "Arise and eat." Eat of His food. Partake of His strength. Go on His sustaining grace.

Are you going through a journey too great for you?

Arise and eat! Come before His throne. Sit at His feet. Get in His Word. Experience His compassion, His strength, His grace! Yes, the journey is too great for thee...

But it is perfectly sized for you to get to know your Father more intimately. The journey is never too great for Him.

Verse on my kitchen wall... Arise and eat!

(Please continue to pray for the people of Nepal. If you would like to give toward the relief efforts, please visit WGCR Christian Radio Station and Change the World Relief Organization.

100% of the funds go directly into helping the people of Nepal.)

Earthquake

The following post is from a BMW who experienced the earthquake in Nepal on Saturday, April 25, 2015. Please continue to pray for the people of Nepal as they recover from this, and pray that God would be glorified through it all.

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To be honest, I am still mentally and emotionally trying to process what happened Saturday. I think maybe typing it out will be somewhat therapeutic... maybe cathartic.

We were at church. We meet on Saturdays for church here because Sunday is a regular school and work day for the country. I had studied and prepared so hard for the lesson because I had to teach it bilingually. I was excited to have seven children in class. My husband was teaching in the sanctuary. His lesson? The judgment of God in the book of Genesis and how there was only one door on the ark... how the people were warned and did nothing. He had a first time visitor, too. (Her home was destroyed, and had she not have come to church... I hate to think what the results would have been.)

Church building before set up last July.

In my class, we were all sitting or kneeling in the floor. There are no tables or chairs in the classroom. I had my flannelgraph in full swing. Moses had approached the burning bush. I was struggling a little to correctly pronounce the word "bush" in Nepali. We giggled a little about it and I continued on. 

Children's Classroom

A little messy after earthquake

Then I looked up at my daughter as she called out, "Mom!" I realized the building had begun moving.

Nothing to hide under.

Seven children I suddenly became responsible for to guide them through a life and death situation... and we were in a poorly constructed, village brick building on the second floor.

"Out!"

We moved to the next room. No where to hide. A plastic flimsy table and a couple of plastic patio chairs.

My 11 year old daughter grabbed the hands of a couple of the children and ducked down the best she could with them. She said she wasn't afraid. She just did what she could for the younger children.

I went against a wall with support beams and covered my 8 year old son and another young girl. As all this went on, I was not afraid. There was a calmness I cannot explain. And I began praying. I had been teaching in Nepali and my brain had not yet switched gears from Nepali back to English, so I prayed in Nepali.

Children screaming and crying. The quake rumbled on.

I looked up at the walls, and I remember seeing the walls bend and twist in ways my mind could not comprehend. I kept thinking, "Why aren't these walls falling on me? Walls shouldn't bend like that and not fall." It wasn't those walls protecting us. They had become our enemy. The building had become our enemy. But there was a Hand present. Though I couldn't see His hand, I saw the handiwork of my God holding up a building for us.

During the quake, mothers who were outside the church began running into the building to get their children. Fear had gripped them and they made dangerous decisions for the sake of their children.

The large water jug fell over behind me. And the quake began to dissipate enough for us to more safely head downstairs and outside.

Dust everywhere from collapsed houses.

When we got outside and into a field, another tremor came. As I watched the building from outside, it finally hit... fear. The whole earth and the building we had just left swayed, twisted, rocked.

When the tremor stopped, people looked around and realized the devastation.

Screams. A couple of people frantically ran to a small shack. My husband and another church member ran to help. As they looked inside the shack, my husband asked, "Who is in here?!"

"Cow!"

Slapped in the face again with the depravity of man in a country that worships cows.

My husband and a few other men of the church left the shed. "We aren't here to save cows. We are here to rescue men!"

They headed quickly down toward the poorer area of the village, knowing those homes would be easily destroyed. My three children and I followed behind a little slower so that I could talk to them. Along the way, I warned the children that they may see things that are difficult to see. I warned them to guard their eyes... if I told them to look the other way, they were to not look no matter what. I reminded them that God was in control and that they were safe.

We reached a collapsed home where family members were frantically digging. "There are two people in here!"

I put the younger two children in a safe place to sit, far enough away that they could not see anything bad, but close enough for me to keep an eye on them. The rest of us began pulling bricks off the pile. After several minutes, I finally had to stop. I had on sandals and was tripping, sliding, and falling because of them. As much as I wanted to continue, I had to stop for my safety. I went back to my younger children.

When I got back to them, I was very thankful I did. Several more tremors came. I comforted my youngest child the best I could. He was terrified. Earthquakes are his biggest fear.

I looked around and saw so many able-bodied men standing by, doing nothing... watching. Clean hands. And then I saw the group of men and women, including my 15 year old son, working to do whatever they could to find these people. The contrast was startling... frustrating.

The group kept digging and throwing bricks. When they would get to something large and heavy, they would look at my husband who is much taller and stronger than they are, and plead for help. He would immediately rush to lift and remove the item. His white dress shirt was covered in brown brick dust.

Then crying and wailing.

I heard my husband say, "Take the kids away." Heartbroken.

As we started walking back to the church (aftershocks piercing the stillness frequently,) we began seeing people carrying wounded men and women. My husband, realizing we have the only four-wheel drive vehicle that can carry these people to hospitals, pulled out his keys and began transporting people. The children and I would spend the next several hours near the church building, waiting for his return.

As we waited, we talked to people to comfort them, and I tried to begin helping my youngest child deal with the trauma of the event. Every aftershock that rumbled sent people screaming and crying. There were so many aftershocks! My youngest snuggled up close to me.

So many hours passed by. My husband made his final trip to the hospital, and then came and picked us up.

Tired. Hungry.

As we traveled toward home, my husband said, "You are not going to like the road, but we gotta do it."

I saw the only road available for us to go out of the village. Half of it had slid away. There was barely enough room to squeeze through. My husband had already used this path to get people to the hospital. I closed my eyes and refused to look at the cliff or the landslide we were facing.

We made it through. Then we were stopped by a group of people who asked if we had room for one more person to take him to the hospital. We picked him up and drove on. After we dropped him off, we finally made it home. Our earthquake alarm was sounding nonstop. We had just installed the alarm last week. We found our home still standing and little damage to speak of. 

School books in the floor. Vanity mirror tipped forward and contents spilled out. Tupperware container of sugar on the floor, but the lid stayed on. Blessed. Thankful.

Aftershocks were still coming one after another, and with every one our nerves tensed. Emotionally draining to say the least.

Dinner? Well, we couldn't go in the house for long periods of time, so I threw together what I had... raw carrots, some leftover cold ground meat and gravy from the fridge over top of beaten rice, a little cheese, and a spoon of peanut butter.

We set up camp outside in out patio drive area. This would be our home for the next three days because staying indoors was not safe. But in our typical, adventurous, crazy style, our family made the most of it.

(To be continued)