Hope after Ike

Harvest Moon seen last night

Our weather, since Hurricane Ike passed, has been absolutely beautiful with mild, intensely sunny days and nights that are quite cool. The moon was ginormous last night--just lit the room after the lights were turned out, with a lovely orange, then silvery glow. Uncharacteristically for Texas, there is very little wind. But, I'm noticing some odd things for September. The mosquitoes are thick and very attracted to me. The hummingbirds are already gone. There are hundreds of butterflies of varieties which are unfamiliar to me. And on a recent trip we saw many small white birds in fields--perhaps coastal birds. I suppose that a hurricane of that size totally disturbs natural elements for months afterward.

My aunt and cousins returned to the Houston area today and found their houses intact, and unharmed, but very stinky with rotten food. There is no electrical power and very little gasoline in most of the towns. No promises of power soon. Viewing news reports and video footage of the Gulf coast areas, I know that we have much for which to thank God. Many, many people will be cleaning and searching and rebuilding for a very long time.

May the gracious and loving Father God bless, protect and provide for everyone who is in need, who has unanswered questions, and may all of us trust Him for our future, which is always full of hope in Him. The moon is reflected light of the sun and has no ability to produce light of itself. May I reflect the light of the Son of God as well.