Drawing lessons from Greensburg tornado

    "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven." Matthew 6:20.
    On May 4, 2007, at 9:45 p.m., the small town of Greensburg took a direct hit by a mile-and-a-half-wide EF5 tornado with wind speeds over 200 mph. The once-pretty town was 93 percent destroyed.
    It left 10 people dead, 60 injured and 1,200 homeless. All of their homes were damaged or destroyed. People lost all of their earthly possessions; some were even loved ones and friends.
    Help came from all around. People opened their homes, shelters were opened for a while, and some were left with only the clothes on their back.
    Pictures could not do it justice. There was no way to get an idea of the devastation until seeing it in person. Those that saw it were shocked.
    I had lived in Greensburg for six years and how live only 20 miles away in a health care facility. I was devastated when I saw the damage. Greensburg was gone! It was unidentifiable. "This can't be Greensburg! We made a wrong turn somewhere!" I said when seeing it for the first time after the storm.
    Life is so fleeting. Things are gone in an instant; everything we treasure that we think is important can be taken away in a second. We need to put our treasure in heaven and not get too attached to things on earth.
    Heavenly Father, help us to learn from this disaster to put our treasure in heaven.

Ruth Reiling
Bucklin