Spared Again

Praise God, Isaias went from category 1 hurricane to tropical storm, then missed South Florida completely! Hallelujah!! It came close enough to give us some showers but nothing out of the ordinary. There were also a few gusts of wind occasionally, but again nothing for concern. I'd brought in my patio furniture on Saturday in case the storm got closer; Sunday morning it was back outside. 

We are still praying for this storm to either dissipate or head out into the ocean. It can still become a hurricane again, since the waters are warm this time of year. The Carolinas seem to be the possible target, but we know that the weatherman doesn't direct the storm. We are so thankful this morning for our faithful God, and we trust Him that He will take care of our friends in Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, and anywhere else this storm may be headed.

 Who is like you, LORD God Almighty? You, LORD, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you. You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them. - Psalm 89:8-9

Not Another One...

We interrupt this house tour to bring a special announcement: Hurricane Isaias is the first hurricane of the season to threaten Florida. This is significant for two reasons: one, the height of hurricane season is September - October, yet here we have a hurricane headed our way that should reach us by August 1. Two, it's July and we're already on letter I of the alphabet. That means there's already been eight storms in the Atlantic and we haven't hit peak season. 

Forecasters predict that hurricane Isaias will brush along the eastern border of Florida, but that's just a prediction. Hurricanes rarely do what the weatherman says they're going to do. While it's only a category 1 at this time (late afternoon July 31) it can potentially strengthen to a category 2 or weaken back down to a tropical storm. Either way I've decided it's best to be prepared. I've brought in my small plants to allow them to acclimate to the indoors, and tomorrow I'll bring in my patio furniture. Thankfully it isn't much. We're blessed to have hurricane shutters on most of the windows, though I doubt I will have to use them since it's a weak storm. Still, we haven't been through a hurricane in this new house, so we don't know what to expect. Will the power go out? Will it take long for it to be restored? We're experiencing a heat wave right now, with temps in the 90's but "feels like" temperatures above 100 degrees. The thought of no a/c is frightening. The water levels in the canal behind us have been lowered in anticipation of heavy rainfall, but will there be extensive flooding? It's too soon to know anything, but I'll try to update regularly.

We are praying for this storm to go out into the ocean and stay there, where it won't affect anyone. If you're reading this, I hope you will pray with me. "The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." (James 5:16b). Thanks. God bless you.