“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”  (Heb 12:2-3) 

       There have been a surprising number of destructive tornadoes this year, including the class 5 twister that hit Joplin.  It was a twister with a width of half a mile.   Time magazine reported that it was the most damaging tornado on record.  The death toll was the worst since the 1950s.  

       On our second day at Council, a funnel cloud was moving right over the downtown area of Kansas City.  It never touched down, but we were all evacuated to the basement.  It was very interesting being huddled with a bunch of Christian leaders in an underground place.   I listened in on some of the conversations happening around me, and it was a blessing to hear people talking about their ministries, words of testimony, what God was doing in lives and churches, how we can improve missions mobilization and the GCF…..the whole time a possible tornado overhead.  

      It was symbolic and meaningful for me.   There are storms of various kinds raging all around us all the time, but we can still pray, collaborate, and be about the Father’s business.  In fact, it can be a very special refocusing and re-centering time to huddle with others in prayer in a temporary haven.   We can persevere and experience the joy set before us when we set our minds on things above, where Christ is seated as our ROCK….above and beyond the storms and with us in them.     That's what I'm thinking about today.