The Best Laid Plans

90% of Greensburg, Kansas was destroyed in just a few moments last week by a tornado. Like most small cities in the Mid-West, Greensburg was a carefully planned town. As you can see in the above photo, the streets were laid out in a careful grid. The planning was deliberate, organized, structured, and well thought out. The purpose was to help the residents feel comfortable and safe as they traveled to and fro throughout their town. It is these streets alone that are familiar now. Most residents would find it very difficult if not impossible to identify their property now if this grid work hadn't survived.

Chaos breaks into our lives unexpected and unwelcome. the familiar landmarks of our carefully constructed lives are destroyed and we feel adrift, without moorings. Then we become aware that something, something familiar, something trustworthy remains and we begin to find our way once again. That something has many names; hope, love, courage, community, faith. The residents of Greensburg speak of those things now. They talk of gratitude that their lives were spared, they speak of hope as they plan to rebuild.

Click here for some more incredible aerial photos of the devastation. As you look at these photos, think of all the lives that have been affected. Pray that they would have courage and hope and faith and know that those prayers have already been answered. The rebuilding, the planning, and the dreaming has already begun.