"There are many more rainbows than there are earthquakes."
I wondered how long it would take for the headline grabbing televangelists and talk show hosts to begin touting the earthquake and now hurricane Irene as signs from God. It's a well documented tradition that goes back a long, long way. Sure enough, there are now some fairly prominent people playing the 'sign from God' card.
Honestly, I don't have too much of a problem with the premise itself. I think God does communicate to us through the events of life, through nature, through events over time and through signs and wonders.
The problem for me is that these guys only interpret bad things as signs from God. And we've had two of he Big Three this week on the east coast of the U.S. Storms, earthquakes and plagues are traditionally considered warning signs that God is angry and if we don't repent, he'll hit that 'SMITE' button on his keyboard, unleashing his wrath on a helpless humanity.
My contention is that it is bogus to see earthquakes, storms and disease as signs from God, but to ignore rainbows, the sunrise or springtime as just part of life. If an earthquake is a sign of God's wrath, then the rainbow must necessarily be a sign of God's faithfulness.
Those who don't believe in God attribute both to irrelevance, with the theology of "Shit Happens". They think it's ridiculous to see God behind the events of life, good or bad.
But those of us who do believe in God should learn to look for the rainbows. There are many more rainbows than there are earthquakes. God's love, hope, faithfulness, glory and providence are constantly being expressed by a universe created to reflect His presence, power and personality at every possible opportunity.
So, let's use the argument that the storm and earthquake are signs from God to read all of the signs from God, and really appreciate the sunrise, fresh fruit, the coming of fall and countless other events that teach us how wonderful He is.
Besides, if God wanted to show off, He'd probably do better than a Cat 2 hurricane or a magnitude 5.8 earthquake.