Heaps of Rubble

My eyes were glued to the television as Hannity and his camera crew drove through the flooded streets of Louisiana showing the massive destruction. Devastated homes and devastated lives drenched and torn apart. The waters had ceased but the lawns and streets were piled high with ruined stuff. Stuff that filled houses making them homes. Lifetime memories and treasures destroyed. Nothing left but rubble.

I opened the computer this morning where I found the news of the towns of Amatrice and Arquata del Tronto in central Italy being hit by a 6.2-magnitude earthquake early on Wednesday morning killing dozens. There staring at me was more destruction and devastation. Lives caught unprepared and unaware!

How do you start over? How do you rebuild from zero? When insurance provision is not there and no major effort of government assistance is on the horizon, where do you put your hope? My heart felt their despair and hopelessness.

But wait a minute! All is not hopeless. We don’t live as those who have no hope and no God. Our God is the rebuilder and restorer of broken walls, burned cities, and a flooded world. He sent Jesus to repair our broken world and lives. He is Lord over all devastation.

Whispering hopeless words in my ears was the same enemy that lied to Nehemiah when he set out to rebuild the walls around Jerusalem. The task was huge, but God gave him favor and provided all that he needed to rebuild.

“When Sanballat (enemy) heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria. ‘What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubble, and burned ones at that? Yes what they are building –if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall.’” Nehemiah 4:1-3

The enemy sought to frustrate their efforts by ridiculing them and filling their hearts with discouragement. If you read the entire story you will see the enemy trying every kind of strategy to bring the work to a screeching halt. He was totally unsuccessful.

“So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.” v. 6

As the story goes, they united themselves, took up their tool in one hand and their weapon in the other. They watched out for one another and the job was completed in a miraculous 52 days! Only God can do that!

That’s right! Only God can rebuild cities, homes, businesses and people! Nothing is too broken for Him. It is amazing that He lets us join Him in the work and see His mighty power restore devastation!

May our hearts be filled with hope. May our prayers not be pitiful but powerful as we ask God to send the help that is needed. If He calls us to go, we go, but we definitely go in prayer.

If your own life is flooded and shaken with loss, grief, depression, sickness, financial draught…God has not forgotten you. He sees you. He hears you. Cry out to Him and He will answer you. Help is on the way! Get up from your pile of rubble and watch for Him. Get yourself with other believers who can brick by brick help you rebuild a broken life.

Don’t lay down in despair in your heap of rubble. Don’t listen to the enemy’s taunts to quit. Climb to the roof and watch for help.

I am praying for all who read this post to be encouraged that God is a builder and restorer of broken things.