A Mighty Perspective

My God is mightier than any Mississippi River!!! In the name of my Jesus, those levees WILL hold, and my family, town, and state WILL be DRY!

I took a drive home last week for my brother’s spring football game and Briarfield’s graduation. As I drove home, the tension of the rising Mississippi River became almost tangible. I navigated the beautiful scenery of highway 61 all the way up to Natchez, MS. There were no looming signs warning of an attack of flooding waters or any public service announcements warning residents to flee for high ground. The ride was simply serene, until….

As I crossed the Mississippi River bridge into Vidalia, LA, I realized that this threat of flooding is a very serious issue. The newly built riverfront park area in Vidalia is now underwater. If you haven’t been there before, you would never know it existed. My heart immediately sank for the many families and businesses that would be affected by this historical flood.

A few weeks ago, I went on a motorcycle ride with my dad (my first and probably my last). As we rode Lake Providence, thoughts ran through my mind of the things I cherish about my sweet town. On my latest drive from Vidalia all the way to Lake Providence, the same thoughts ran through my mind of the things I would miss if my hometown was to be covered with the waters of the muddy Mississippi. Now, I feel the need to share. Let me take you to MY Lake Providence:

Imagine a town where the people are few and the crops are plenty. Take a ride down a local road. As you drive with the windows down, country music describes the very scenery through which you are moving. The landscape dances to the tune. Fields are full of color. The green leaves of soybean fields meet the yellow of corn peeping through its husk. The white bolls of cotton neighbor the beautiful gold of wheat fields that sway just perfectly in the rare summer breeze.

Just beyond the fields is a row of trees with leaves clapping along with the beat. Stately oaks, broad magnolias, and brilliant pines blend together a gorgeous array of green that buffers just right against a beautiful blue summer sky.

Making a turn towards home, you notice the weeds garnishing the roadside. Honeysuckle brings the smell of summer right to your nose, as buttercups wave from the ground below. Just then another car is approaching.  A nice country bumpkin just like yourself, no doubt. You don’t recognize the face, but you wave anyway. It’s an expected gesture that leaves a little warm sensation in your heart each time. Now, you’re turning towards home. You mom will be waiting with a glass of ice cold sweet tea and the relaxing aroma of cornbread and pecan pie fill your nose and tickle your belly. You’re fixna have supper with your family. It’s the perfect ending to a perfect day.

Then, I must leave. Traveling down a sentimental dirt road, the dust clouds the past behind you and the sun shines beautifully on the future you drive into. This is MY Lake Providence.

These are emotions that could be covered by water with this looming flood. I choose believe in my God to deliver His perfect creation from that threat. Again, the Mississippi may be mighty, but my God is mightier!

But you have seen the LORD perform all these mighty deeds with your own eyes! --Deut 11:7 Join with me in prayer for the town that means so much to me, my family, and my friends. God is good, and His grace is sufficient.