Texas Snowpocalypse 2021
Boy howdy, what a week last week was, right? For those of you who may not know, Texas experienced a polar vortex where we saw sleet, snow, ice, and single-digit temperatures, the likes of which hadn’t been seen here since 1985. Some went without power for days; others didn’t have water; some experienced the loss of both. And when water came back, we had to boil the water to ensure that potential harmful bacteria were killed. A friend of mine who lives near Boerne experienced the loss of both; when the water came on, they discovered a burst pipe. Calling a plumber, she found that there were 300 customers before her. It has been quite an experience, I must say.
I wanted to share some observations I made during this whole Snowpocalypse.
Be alert and watchful. I walked my new dog Tessa (we got her the Sunday after Thanksgiving last year. She’s a 2 ½ year old German Shepherd mix and the absolute owner of my heart. There’s a devotional in the making about her, so I won’t go into any more detail here) the Sunday we canceled church because of the ice. I bundled up, wearing tennis shoes (instead of the snow boots I had just purchased the day before) because I thought it would be more of a workout because Tessa is a very brisk walker. We got a quarter mile away from my house when I moved from walking in the street onto the sidewalk and, like a pratfall in a movie, my legs went up from under me and I landed on my backside, bruising my hand and my bum. In fact, my bum still hurts a bit. It feels odd asking you to pray for my bum, so I won’t, but I’m not going to turn them down if you decided you wanted to. I’d be bummed out, though, if you didn’t pray for me. (cracking myself up at that one). After I got myself up, wincing in pain, we continued slowly on the street so that she could get some exercise. Went a far distance and then I slipped again, this time on the street. Luckily, I landed more on my side this time. However, like the physical comedy that can happen in a movie for laughs, it took me more than a couple of tries to stand on my feet, as the ice was incredibly slippery, and every time I’d try to stand up, I’d slip. I walked sideways to what seemed to be a drier part of the street, and gingerly trudged back home. Lesson: I was ill-equipped to walk my dog in an ice storm. I wore the wrong shoes and I didn’t pay proper attention to the dangers of the black ice that was around me. Similarly, we can do the same in our Christian walk. Peter tells us in 1 Peter 5:8 to “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” If we are not aware of our surroundings, we too can slip and fall—fall away from the discipline of prayer, Bible reading, and fellowship; fall prey to the manipulations of the devil and his schemes; fall off the proverbial wagon into sin.
God’s providence and timing is amazing. Through an odd series of events, I am booked on an eight-day land tour of Iceland with my mother-in-law at the beginning of October of this year. In researching what to pack for this land trip, I found that snow boots were recommended (along with hiking shoes, which I already have a pair). I found a pair of snow boots at Kohl’s the Saturday before the storm hit—they were London Fog so they were great quality; they were being discontinued and were on sale, so I got them for right under $20. I never imagined I’d use them as much as I did before October. Their grip gave me certainty where I walked and their length protected my legs as Tessa and I walked through snow banks as we explored during her walks. Lesson: Some attribute the timing of my boots purchase to fate, or luck, or chance. But you and I know better, my friend, don’t we? We read in Matthew 6:8b: “…for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” The Lord knew I needed boots for the crazy Texas ice and snow, and He provided.
Don’t take the little things for granted. We are blessed to live in a world where (present circumstances excepted for some of us) we have clean running water, food in our refrigerator, internet and phone service, and warmth in our houses during the slight Texas winters (and boy howdy, cooling in the summertime!). Lesson: When forced to live without these things, we quickly realize how much we take these luxuries for granted. Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5 to “give thanks in all circumstances”. May we remember those times in which we could not shower or flush the commode, and be thankful for all the times that we can. Yes, we easily praise Him when the power is returned, or when the water first comes out of the pipes, but do we remember to thank Him when we can access power and water without any challenges? It is a habit we should all get into the habit of doing, if we are not already.
Make hay while the sun is shining. We lost water Monday when our pipes froze, and like many others, we melted snow to put into the toilet tank so that we could flush the commode. We were joyous when the water came back later that day. I filled our coffee makers (regular Mr. Coffee for my husband, and the Keurig and the Nespresso machine for me. Can you tell which one of us is the coffee snob?) with water, as well as maybe one pitcher. On Wednesday, our water pressure started getting lower, and the water tank didn’t refill when I flushed the commode. We were impacted by the SAWS water outage, and I was perturbed with myself for not having filled up more water containers. The next morning, when I realized that the water pressure had improved, I showered and then proceeded to boil as much water as I could to keep on hand for drinking and cleaning, afraid that it would go out again. It did not go out, and as of this writing (Monday at 9:30PM, the boil notice for my street has been rescinded!). Lesson: be diligent about doing what needs to be done during the time that you have to do it. Time is not always promised to you. Jesus tells his disciples in John 9:4, “As long as it is day, we must do the works of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.” Boil your water, hug your family, share the gospel, for there will be a time when we won’t have the opportunity to do so.
Be prepared. The Saturday before Texas was plunged into a deep freeze, I went to HEB. It was more crowded than a typical Saturday, but there wasn’t a frenzy of people stockpiling toilet paper and firewood (thankfully). I got my normal grocery items, grabbed just a few extras like ground turkey, apples, and salad mixes, and went on my way. What I regret not having picked up more of was water (see above). I knew that there was the potential for sleet, snow, and colder temperatures; I just don’t think I (or anyone) realized the downstream impacts this storm had on everyone and everything. Lesson: like the Boy Scouts motto: be prepared. Matthew tells us in chapter 24 to “Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” You see, God Almighty is in control of everything in this world, even though at times it may not seem like He is, with all the evil we see in the world. We need to be diligent and intentional about understanding our own salvation—we may think that we have time to “get right” with God, or we may assume that we’ve “gotten right” with God already because we have always gone to church, and know all of the hymns by heart, and do good works. Friends, I’m going to be straight with you—that’s now how this works. Since we don’t know when the Lord will call us Home, by our passing from this life into the eternal, or by us meeting Him in the clouds in the twinkling of an eye, we cannot bank on the fact that we have an unlimited amount of time to be reconciled to Him.
If you’re reading this and are not 1000% sure that you are His child but want that assurance, please reach out to Pastor Wayne, Skylar, or any one of the church elders. We would be blessed to talk to you about salvation.
Prayer Requests and Praise Reports
Prayers for:
LaVerne Prilop, who has been hospitalized since Saturday and is now in hospice care
Lana, LaVerne’s daughter, and others who are facing the potential loss of their loved ones
Those who are experiencing health conditions and concerns but are unable to get them addressed for various reasons
Praise reports:
Judy Wallace has been released from the hospital! She says that overall, she’s doing okay—that she’s tired but resting. TGBTG!
For this absolutely beautiful weather—it was at least 60 degrees warmer today (Tuesday) than at this time last week (isn’t that crazy?)
Tremendous praise for the work that Jesus did at the cross – He died to redeem us from slavery to sin and death, y’all! Praise!!
My son Greg had five minutes of power every hour through the first part of the storm. He shared that he found it to be kind of nice to have the opportunity to read instead of being distracted by video games or social media. Because some couldn’t even dial in for meetings because of the lack of power, my work week was quieter than normal, something for which I was tremendously thankful. Lesson: may we always seek to find the positive in the challenges the Lord sends us, for they are there. It may require us to ask Him to reveal them to us, but that right there is a prayer and time spent with Him.
Quotes
“The reason why many are still troubled, still seeking, still making little forward progress is because they haven't yet come to the end of themselves. We're still trying to give orders, and interfering with God's work within us.“ -- A.W. Tozer
“We cannot afford to let down our Christian standards just to hold the interest of people who want to go to hell and still belong to a church.” -A.W. Tozer