On this day, three years ago,
-I didn’t know where my elderly father was and if he had been evacuated from the senior’s home beside the river,

-my sister-in-law had to wade through water to get to her patients at the hospital,

-my brother, cut off by wash-outs, refused helicopter rescue and stayed to help neighbours whose property was crumbling into the raging Cougar Creek,

-my son’s family’s home and vehicle was under eight feet of water and sewage after the Highwood River changed course and the berms meant to protect the town center redirected water into his neighbourhood 3 kilometers away,

-I was in Edmonton on the other side of the mountains from my husband with washed out bridges and roads between us,

-our daughter’s family couldn’t get back to their home in Alberta for the same reason,

-the familiar landmarks of my childhood in downtown Calgary were submerged,

-and soldiers drove tanks down the Queen E II highway on rescue operations.

That day this verse meant a lot to me: When you face stormy seas I will be there with you with endurance and calm; you will not be engulfed in raging rivers. If it seems like you’re walking through fire with flames licking at your limbs, keep going; you won’t be burned.                         (Isaiah 43:2 The Voice)

On this day, three years later, I can say God has been with us with endurance and calm. We were not engulfed. I have hope and an even stronger sense that God is good.

Thank you, Lord, that when we are on a difficult or lonely road you have already placed provisions we will need there in advance. We just need to look to you to see the bigger picture.