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Together With God: Severe Weather

By D. Susan Rutz
Published on January 28, 2011

I moved to Kansas as a young bride, and it was only three months later when I was faced with the threat of severe weather. Sure, I’d heard of tornadoes and had seen horrific photographs on television, but now I was living it.

I was driving across town when the radio warned that storms were imminent and that a tornado had been spotted on the ground. I pulled into the first parking lot I saw – a grocery store – and ran inside. Everyone was calm as they shopped or waited in line to pay for their purchases. It appeared that everyone was ignoring the danger, so I screamed as loud as I could that the radio had just announced a tornado on the ground.

My husband later explained to me that radio stations cover a large listening area, and that the tornado that was spotted on the ground was 50 miles away in another town.

After 20-plus years of living in Kansas, I’ve learned not to panic and to listen carefully to the warnings. I’ve also learned the names of the different towns and counties, and how far away a storm can be before it reaches my immediate danger zone.

Father, thank You for the technology that helps warn us of approaching storms. Give us the knowledge we need to protect ourselves when we cannot get out of a storm’s path. Help those who are struck with disaster, and give us all the courage and fortitude to survive the dangers of living on Earth. – Amen.