Many members of our daughter-in-law Rebekah's family live in Calgary and one household has been forced to evacuate as heavy rainfall results in unprecedented flooding. This is not a localized problem. More than a hundred thousand people have been displaced. It appears that the Bow has crested but the city core is awash. Long-timers say they have never seen the rivers and streams so swollen.
Isn't that what we are hearing everywhere these days? Record drought in the American South, record wildfires as well. In Ontario's cottage country is was unprecedented flooding this year, and Britain, and parts of Europe. Tornadoes that are wider and faster than ever before. Weather events are costing billions, even trillions of dollars in damage and disruption.
Do you notice that no one uses terms such as "Hundred Year Storm" anymore? We have been advised by the scientific community that extreme weather is one outcome of climate change. While we just can't conclude that what is happening recently is related to climate change we can't rule it out either. And there in the very heart of the wealth generated by oil, the waters rise.
I don't want to be a false prophet Chicken Little. I just hope that this weather has our attention, and we don't simply shake our heads in disbelief. Reading the ancient, authentic prophets of scripture we see that their role was to get God's people to wake up.
Are you feeling helpless? Are you awake? Are we all listening for God's direction?
2 comments:
A family friend of ours was down yesterday from Calgary, and he showed me some photos on his Blackberry of the inside of the Saddledome. Water, ten rows up.
He also told me that the worst isn't over as places like High River are in tight should the rain continue. He's explained the cause of all of this as having to do with air masses and snow that usually passes over the Rockies from B.C. coming as water, instead.
Crazy stuff!
How we can't identify this as a product of climate change is really beyond me at this point. Surely this kind of evidence (and the others you mention) must sway most of them ...
Our UCC website has a place where we can donate to help victims of flooding - and 100% of donations go to the victims... I realize this is a reaction to disaster rather than a preventative measure - but our governments need to wake up, too, and realize that some things need to change in order to slow down these climate - related disasters.
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