Around the World

The past few weeks have been filled with stories of tragedy from around the world. In Myanmar, (formerly Burma), a major cyclone brought death and devastation of almost unfathomable proportions. If we had not so recently seen what a tsunami could do, the thought of over 100,000 dead from a single disaster would be nearly impossible to imagine. Current estimates are that as many as 128,000 may have perished in Cyclone Nargis when it came ashore on May 2nd. Here are some of the survivors getting a little something to eat.

On Monday of this week, May 12th, we were stunned to learn that a major 7.9 earthquake, had shaken the central China province of Sichuan. The earthquake collapsed many buildings with current reports placing the number of dead at 15,000 with many more missing and injured. Many thousands more have been displaced when their homes were destroyed. Here is a scene from the damaged area of China.

How often I take the lack of disaster in my own life for granted. I have former youth group member who now lives with her husband and family in Palm Bay,Florida where they are facing their own form of disaster. Perhaps you have heard about the wildfires that are raging around Palm Bay that have destroyed many homes and businesses. While our friends have been spared from the flames, families in their church have lost everything. Here are some of the scenes of the devastation.

My heart goes out to these folks in each of these devastated areas. I pray that they may find hope in the face of their loss as they are shown the love and concern of Christ. But all this hardship made me wonder what Jesus had in mind when he said in Matthew 6:19-21, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (ESV)

I wonder where my treasure is?