Zapped by Lightning

This came to mind last week: But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere. (Ecclesiastes 2:11 NLT)

On Thursday, April 11, a severe storm passed over North Alabama and left a reminder of this verse for me. We were out of town attending our daughter's wedding in KY when I received a call from a kind neighbor. He said, "I'm sorry to bother you, but your security siren has been going off for the last couple of days...". Bother me? Really? I am so appreciative of this man, whom I hardly even know. Why I wasn't notified by our security system monitoring company is another story. As of this post, they have already been replaced.

We thought it may have been a power surge that caused the alarm, as our neighbor said he peeked in the windows and didn't see any unusual evidence of a burglary. But upon our return four days later, with two granddaughters in tow, we discovered that our roof took a direct hit from lightning, leaving a softball-sized hole, shattering a 2x6 rafter stud, and damaging electrical components throughout our home.

It's stunning that our house did not catch on fire. Stunning! We came home to many inconveniences...phones dead, refrigerators not working, security systems...TVs...DVD players...routers...modems...etc. - not to mention the hole in our roof. But, how much worse it could have been if a spark had ignited...

As thankful as we are to only have the minor inconveniences, honestly, I realized...it's all "just stuff". We had family around us and I just recently handed my daughter's hand to a young man who is now an additional member of our family. The stuff can be replaced...but not our family.

It's a great reminder for me to not get hung up on the stuff of this world - it really is meaningless. Instead I need to keep thinking and focusing on the things of eternal value. Thanks for the reminder, God.... And, I'm also grateful for the lack of a spark....