“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
(Luke 2:14 NIV)
Like other human disasters, the recent destruction of Hurricanes Helene and Milton has created stories of heroism, tragedy, and blessing. The following article by Aimee Herd was posted on Breaking Christian News on October 12, 2024. This story tells of a family’s great loss, and God’s subsequent comfort, delivered through an artist who was listening to and then responded to the Holy Spirit’s leading. If you are struggling in life somehow, hear again that God has not abandoned you. He hears your cries, he knows your angst, and he is very, very present with you. And if you have an opportunity to comfort, encourage, and build up someone else who is walking through a deep valley, I encourage you to bless that person with the Love of God that is within you.
On October 3rd, I wrote an article, posted on BCN, about one family’s account of faith in the midst of great loss amid the devastation of Hurricane Helene. You can read that article HERE, but to refresh your memory, Meghan Drye, along with her 7-year-old son and her parents on Friday, September 27th, had been clinging to the roof of their house in North Carolina, as flood waters from Helene rose. As they hoped for rescue, the house eventually gave way, plunging the four of them into the raging river, along with their dog.
Meghan spent some 5 hours in the water, but was finally rescued. Much later, the bodies of her mother and father, and her precious son Micah were recovered. Meghan described in an interview those final glimpses of Micah and how his faith helped her carry on, “I’m so proud of my son because in those last moments he wasn’t screaming for me, he was screaming, ‘Jesus, Jesus save me. Jesus I hear You, Jesus I’m calling upon You,'” she recalled.
“Everything he wanted to be was a superhero. That was his goal in life, and in a sense he’s my hero. Because he reached for something past flesh, past human, past anything that I think even grown adults would reach for, and he called out to the One God Almighty. And I think in that moment he was rescued, and he became my hero … he was screaming for Jesus, and I think in that moment he found joy.”
But now there is much more to this story, and it’s absolutely beautiful.
Elizabeth Londen is a Believer and an artist…She had NOT heard about Meghan Drye’s loss…[O]n Saturday, September 28th, Elizabeth says she woke up crying, because she had a “title on my heart.” The title was: “Can You Tell My Mommy I’m Safe Now?” According to Elizabeth, she woke up crying, and was crying throughout the morning, as she began writing stanzas to a poem. She notes that she is “not a poet,” and that it really sounded like something a child would say. (View the [Facebook] post with the painting and poem HERE):
…”Can You Tell My Mommy I’m Safe Now?”
Tell her I don’t hurt anymore!
Tell her I feel so great. Like a superhero who could do anything!
Do I have powers now???
Oh. Well that’s okay.
Could you please tell her I left her my favorite blanket?
Felt like the hug I got from You, warm and safe… and I know she could use that too.
Will there be toy trucks in Heaven?
Is my dog Bella up here too?!
Can’t wait to see my grandpa, and all the angels mommy said were watching over me, and waiting for me with You!
DO YOU HEAR THAT?! I love to sing too!
I used to sing a song about how You loved me.
I’m just so happy that You do!
So… Can You talk to people down there?
I won’t be able to.
Can you tell my mom You’ll be there with her?
And she’ll see me one day too.
Soon after the poem and painting was posted on Facebook, Elizabeth was contacted by someone and told about a mom who had lost her son in the flood. Elizabeth reached out to Jessica, Meghan Drye’s sister who had been posting updates about their family and the tragedy, telling her that she thinks she just painted her nephew. Says Elizabeth, “We got on the phone and all we could do was cry.”
“Then she goes into the situation that was the exact dog’s name (Bella) that God had led me to … that dog was on the roof with him. The blanket … the truck … Then I talked to the mom … she told me that was her son, and that she’d look at (the poem and painting) every single day, and she felt this peace … that he was with Jesus.”
…On her update Facebook post, Elizabeth says:
God will find you in the valleys, in the cracks of devastation and in the deepest of oceans beneath the wreckage.
Do you know why?
Because He never left.
The God that is closer than our next breath, doesn’t leave.
I’m resting in that truth today.
And through all the tears, all the stories and God moments—I’ll repeat and preach these three words to myself and to all of you:
Soli. Deo. Gloria. (Glory to God alone)*
Glory to God in the highest! All praise to you, our Lord and King, for your mercies endure forever. You are great and far above all we could ever think or speak. Thank you for your Spirit’s presence with us, especially when we are walking through times of great trial or suffering. Thank you for the ways in which you reveal yourself to us through others’ love. Thank you for all the heroes who are helping those who lost so much in the recent hurricanes. We pray for families who have lost property, livelihoods, and loved ones; may the comfort of your deep Shalom be very present to them. We pray that you will use your Church and any other earthly resources to provide for their needs. We thank you for those who comfort, encourage, and build each other up and pray your Spirit would continue to guide those messages. Thank you for finding us in the valleys, in the cracks of devastation and in the deepest of oceans beneath the wreckage. Thank you for being closer than our next breath and never, ever leaving us. All glory be to you alone, God! We ask these things in Jesus’s name, AMEN.
But [on the other hand] the one who prophesies speaks to people for edification [to promote their spiritual growth] and [speaks words of] encouragement [to uphold and advise them concerning the matters of God] and [speaks words of] consolation [to compassionately comfort them]. (1 Corinthians 14:3 AMP)
*https://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=40456