The date 2011 August 23 has made a permanent spot in my memory. I was alone at home and just finished entering a new blog post titled “The Futility of the Search for Meaning”. I glanced at the clock, surprised to learn it was past 1.45pm but I’d forgotten about lunch. You know how time is in oblivion when you’re focused on writing! Think I’ll make myself a sandwich, I thought. Suddenly, I felt faint and dizzy! It could be my body reminding me about lunch, I figured.

An unusual sick feeling and nauseating sensation persisted. Then in dismay, I observed the walls of my apartment appeared to be swaying – not alarming because it was swaying gently and it felt like being on a plane flying through a patch of turbulence. So I was calm, although by now, the word “earthquake” sprang to mind. As I was seated in front of my computer, I quickly keyed in the words “current newsflash of earthquake” and instantly, from google search popped up several reports confirming that a 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit the U.S.southern state of Virginia at 1.50 pm and the quake tremors were felt as far as New York and Washington, causing people to flee from their homes and offices and the White House in Washington was abandoned in the panic! There was no mention of Toronto in that first newsflash but to me this was adequate explanation. I felt the tremors for less than a minute and that was all! But within the next hour, surfing the net, I read tons and tons of excited reports from people in Toronto and newsmedia confirming that the earthquake tremors proceeding from Virginia were actually felt all the way as far north as Canada! Amazing and scary! But on the positive side, I marvel at the speed and facility we have at our fingertips with digital technology!

Interestingly I soon noticed that because Toronto did not suffer the worst of the quake, the topic of earthquake became a hot talking point giving rise to lots of speculation and people deliberating over  questions like these:

• Christians say God is Love, yet we see natural disasters like earthquakes and hurricanes which are acts of god, destroying places and taking  lives of people, even innocent children ?

• If God truly loves the world, I think God should simply command and silence the earthquake. Why didn’t He do that?

Wonder what will  be your response to these questions? I asked myself.  This led me to ponder and decide to give time to Bible research and prayer before attempting to address these challenging questions on my blog.

I expect many of you have grappled with these nagging questions too and come to your own conclusions.  So I invite you to share your comments here and they will be uploaded for our readers to view.

The first question, in my opinion, arises from a false assumption that God was the mover that caused the earthquake.  I assert that it  is a popular fallacy to attribute all natural disasters as “acts of God”. The term “acts of God” have most commonly featured in contractual clauses of insurance companies and been accepted in legal circles. There’s nothing wrong with using that term but the problem lies in its widespread use to the extent of being used so very loosely as to become misleading and inaccurate. It’s been used conveniently to describe a situation that can’t be explained by human reason or in the case of a helpless or hopeless crisis. It’s been wrongly used in the circumstance of tragic death or terminal illness.

Although it is within God’s absolute power to act if He so willed, I would like to point out that the Bible has only a few rare isolated examples of God’s wrath manifesting in natural disasters ( the Flood in Noah’s days is one) and these examples in fact carry  much less weight compared to other numerous references in the Bible showing the true nature of  God as being Loving, Kind, Merciful, Patient and Forbearing towards sinners although God hates sin. For the most part, the Bible shows God as a loving father whose affection for us is so deep that He is eager to forgive and cleanse us when we honestly repent and confess Jesus is indeed our Savior who on Calvary’s Cross suffered the punishment for the sins of the world.

John 3:16 says “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him won’t perish but will have eternal life.” 

And Jesus gave many similar messages such as this :

“I assure you that whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and won’t come under judgment but has passed from death into life.”  John 5:24

To the second question, I’d say we are advised to look at the big picture when discussing Life versus Death issues. When we put on our macro lens, we may begin to see why Christians call it the “Good News” and what’s so good or great about Jesus’ proclamation and the Bible’s promises.  It’s the trust and belief that God in His Plan of Salvation has offered to everyone the ultimate and best gift of all – that is, the gift of eternal life, victory over Death  through belief in the power of Resurrection.

Well, think about it. Isn’t this a greater gift than if God just stepped in to deliver some folks out of an earthly disaster like an earthquake –  achieving no eternal benefit at all, except that would just let the survivors  live on and toil or enjoy (depending on their life circumstance)  for some years down the road  until  another crisis hits when Death rears its ugly head again. Truly on this earth, you know very well, no living person escapes inevitable Death whether it be death from natural disaster, human error, terminal illness, cancer, tragic accident or whatever! At best, we hope for ourselves that we’ll be so blessed to one day depart peacefully or what most would euphemistically call “a natural passing away” but Christians will aptly use the term “gone home to be with Our Lord”.Whether you choose to believe or not, the truth is, against Death, the Christian hope is as best as it can get in my opinion.

So countless believers through the generations have embraced this good news embodied in the victory of the Cross. Jesus Christ conquered Death and opened the way to eternal life for all who believe. “He did this to destroy the one who holds the power over death—the devil…”  it says in Hebrews 2:14

The truth is God desires and delights in salvation not destruction. God’s adversary, the Devil is the one who delights in destruction and “holds the power over Death” as the Scripture says. Let’s be clear on this. God is not a weapon of mass destruction but the Devil is. Or more accurately, Sin is the root of destruction. I love these words of  the apostle Paul in Romans 5:12 explaining the origin of Sin and its pervasive effects on our world:   ^“So, in the same way that sin entered the world through one person, and death came through sin, so death spread to all human beings with the result that all sinned.”

On a different note, I invite us to turn from the subject of natural disasters to consider now God’s marvelous and magnificent works in the creation of the world.

Do you know God’s presence can be impressed upon human consciousness in a myriad of ways and it’s likely to be very different from one believer to the next? But I discovered one wonderful way seems to work marvels with all people. I am referring to the communicative power of Nature to arouse even the most unspiritual person.

Try to recall some of your past group leisure tours and sightseeing adventures and you know what I mean. In your tour party, I expect to find not many religious people since tour packages attract by and large leisure holiday-makers in contrast to the pilgrimage or mission goers. Hence I find it quite amazing that even the most unspiritual person can be spiritually moved in a sense when standing before an awesome piece of God’s work. I’ve witnessed this in my travel groups again and again. I observed that even a self-proclaimed atheist was more than a little aroused and quickened in his inner spirit  though  only for a fleeting scenic moment in time!  For indeed, Nature powerfully showcases the divine glory of her Creator! Through Nature God touches all men, whatever their race, culture, religion or belief. As the Bible says:

“Heaven is declaring God’s glory;
the sky is proclaiming his handiwork.”   Psalm 19:1

Speaking of myself, I’m thrilled by mountainscapes that decline into valleys with gushing waters flowing into rivers or simply small streams that finally culminate in a lovely and peaceful lake. I think that’s why I fell for Canada! But others may prefer a very different landscape. I notice that with most people born and grown up in America and Canada, their popular idea of a perfect vacation spot is quite different from mine. It  is likely to be one with exotic tropical palms, sandy beaches and salty seas! Others may simply love the sight and smell of mighty oceans – like people I know who love driving up the Pacific Coast Highway through Santa Barbara to San Francisco Bay and never seem to get enough of that experience. I don’t care much for Pacific rocky coasts and the smell and sound of the ocean but I rather love the sound of gushing waters. Besides my love of mountain scenery,  I enjoy visiting places like Niagara Falls and the remarkable thing is every visit to the Falls turn out for me as exciting as the first.

Before writing this blog, I’m glad I did some soul-searching asking myself why the mountains make such a strong impression with me.  I can now sum up by saying the images of mountains remind me of the character of God and the awesome experience itself inspires my spiritual transformation and growth. Let me explain. Somehow to me, mountains mirror God’s Magnificence, Glory, Greatness, Beauty, Steadfastness and Constancy. It’s like an assuring reminder that He is always there and shall not be moved ! Further, the experience exerts a positive influence in growing Christian character, for example, instilling:

Humility : I always feel small and am humbled when I gaze up at the towering mountains and open skies above and reflect, as the psalmist says:

                “When I look up at the skies, at what your fingers made—
                the moon and the stars that you set firmly in place – what are human beings 
                that you think about them;  what are human beings 
                that you pay attention to them?”                                Psalm 8:3-4  

Peace :   I discover peace on two levels :  peace in the physical sense of  feeling liberated from the  world’s anxiety and stress. On the other hand,  I take a step closer to comprehend the peace that the Bible speaks of : “the peace that surpasses understanding”.  Honestly I often struggle to understand this peace – not to speak of attaining this peace but I can say that experiencing the mountains and highlands in my travels have helped me make some progress, albeit in taking small steps at a time.

 Joy :       It’s uplifting for me to meditate on the fact that God is far greater than even this Mighty Rock, Refuge, Fortress and Strong Tower before my eyes and it is God who holds my life and future in His Hands. That’s reason to rejoice !

 “Because all things were created by him: 
   both in the heavens and on the earth, 
   the things that are visible and the things that are invisible. 
   Whether they are thrones or powers, 
   or rulers or authorities, 
   all things were created through him and for him.”   Colossians 1:16

All Bible quotes are from the Common English Bible