In a Moment – In the Twinkling of an Eye
That title is a scriptural reference that refers to the return of our Lord Jesus Christ “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:52) I plan on being one of that number. That glorious day cannot be compared to what I am blogging about today, but it came to mind, so I figure God is urging us to get prepared.
Preparing is what I have been doing since the brilliant idea of moving to Austin surfaced. It all came together so quickly – the house put up for sale, the house selling in two days, finding my new apartment home, the downsizing, the packing and at last — the move! BUT, alas — not the move. I am still here in Frisco’s Arctic tundra — in what was once my home.
Let’s just say: “in a moment, in the twinkling of my eye, my resolute plans to be moved to Austin yesterday, the 15th, stalmated. We’re in a black-out situation for protection of everyone’s electricity – 45 minutes on; 45 minutes off because of this unprecedented frigid and dangerous Arctic cold, the ice AND the snow. My sis-in-law called and asked if this is what I had in mind when I was whining about my stomping-grounds in Tulsa having a beautiful blanket of snow over the Christmas holidays. I wished for it here in Frisco. NO, this is NOT what I had in mind. At times like this I refer to this scripture: “God’s ways are not our ways, and neither are God’s thoughts, our thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8) God has a way of pulling a trump card anytime He so chooses, and it looks like God’s plan wasn’t my plan to move south just yet.
Oh the lessons we can learn at times like this. I decide to brave the elements to take a few photos (seen here) of the snow beauty, yet perilous conditions to my movers coming from Austin. I bundle up in three layers, fur hat, coat and one ski glove. I need one hand to be free to snap the photos. I close the garage door, then take pics of my home (rather, the new owners’ home) at the front and back. My right hand is feeling the pain of the cold. I feels like I am already getting frost bite, so I rush to my garage door panel. GASP! IT DOESN’T WORK! I try the number sequence repeatedly. My hand can’t take the cold any longer. I hasten to my neighbors who invite me into their warm home. We talk about what I can do to solve the situation and the rocket-scientists that we are — we realize their electricity is off so mine must be too. Thirty minutes later, we rejoice that their electricity comes on and so did mine. Lesson learned. Leave another door unlocked when you go out the garage door in the tundra AND don’t leave any body parts exposed to these temps!
My minor issues amid the worst winter weather in Texas in decades pale in comparison to those who were involved in the I-35-vehicle wreck in Ft. Worth that killed six people and injured dozens more. The reason was that ice fell before the snow began, coating our bridges and roads. At this time last year we were close to being shut down in so many ways from the pandemic. I thought about this shut down and shut in from this weather. In the moment – in the twinkling of an eye, life can change on a dime. The question is – are we prepared for whatever it holds? For those six that died in the Ft. Worth accident – were they prepared? I don’t know about you, but I am sensing that it is time for us to live with street smarts of what to do in case of emergencies AND heaven-smarts on how to live our lives in case “in the moment, in the twinkling of an eye” heaven comes to us sooner than later than we think.