The heavens will vanish like smoke . . . . But my salvation will last forever.
As Hurricane Laura raged through the Gulf of Mexico toward the US coastline of Louisiana, the warnings were dire. One sheriff, noting the 150-mile-per-hour winds, issued this jolting message: “Please evacuate. But if you choose to stay and we can’t get to you, write your name, address, social security number, and next of kin and put it in a Ziploc bag in your pocket. Praying that it does not come to this.” Rescue crews knew that once Laura hit land, they could only watch the storm’s destructive path—helpless in its wake.
Whenever God’s people in the Old Testament faced natural or spiritual calamity, His words were far more certain and hopeful, promising His presence despite destruction. He said that He would “look with compassion on all her ruins; [and would] make her wastelands . . . like the garden of the Lord” (Isaiah 51:3). And more, God always assured His people of the rescue and healing that would certainly follow if they would only trust Him. Even though “the heavens [would] vanish like smoke,” God said, His “salvation [would] last forever” (v. 6). Whatever the damage, His ultimate goodness toward them wouldn’t be thwarted, ever.
God doesn’t safeguard us from hardship, but He does promise that His restorative healing extends far beyond the ruin.
By Winn Collier
