Why I'm Here

Because Jesus is alive, and if we have accepted what He did for us through His death and resurrection, we can have a life that is full of meaning and purpose. In Ephesians 1, Paul wrote:
11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise...

Life has meaning and we can have a sense of fulfillment because Christ has fulfilled the Father's will by dying on a cross and rising from the dead. And, He gives us the power to live a renewed life, made possible by our dying to self and living unto Him.  The presence of the Holy Spirit in us equips us to live the life that God intends, to experience what He has in store for us.  Because He is alive, we are empowered to live according to His purpose! 

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The apostle Paul addressed the topic of purpose in a passage in 2nd Timothy chapter 1, reminding us 
that we serve a risen Lord who suffered for us, so that we might be brought into a relationship with Himself. We can read these verses:
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,
9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,
10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
11 to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.

March 25, 2021 will be a memorable day for the community of Ohatchee, Alabama, which is located in Calhoun County in the northeast part of the state, south of Gadsden and to the northwest of Anniston.  It was struck by a powerful and deadly tornado that day, in which 5 area residents lost their lives. The Montgomery Advertiser reported that:

The tornado that hit the tiny northeastern Alabama town was categorized the following day as at least a "high-end EF 2" with winds of 135 mph that stretched at least a half-mile wide and likely wider, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Chris Darden.

The Advertiser story highlighted the impact and victims of the storm, as well as their families.  Joshua Farmer's plight was included in the story.  Farmer is described as the "caretaker" of Ragan Chapel United Methodist Church.  The article states:

For over 150 years the church had withstood the test of time and the wrath of God and that's where Farmer chose to seek refuge. Though, Thursday's storm would violently end that tenure.

Farmer, who lives behind the church and had been its caretaker for several years, first sat in an interior hallway but as the world got quiet around him, he turned to a storage closet, pulled the door shut and held a pillow over his head.

Surrounded by artificial greenery and linens, he listened as the building around him began to twist and rip apart.

The story related that the roof had been torn off the building, the steeple toppled, and "the cross on top was missing." The back wall was "pulled off," but the kitchen survived. So did a portrait of the Last Supper on one of the remaining walls. Farmer said, “I thought I was going to die. Like, legitimately, I thought that was it. I thought I was finished,” adding, “But I survived it somehow and I walked out of there. I walked away untouched. Not sure why I’m here.”  Farmer is adamant that people should heed their local weather warnings.

And, the rebuilding of the church has already begun, according to Birmingham television station CBS42, which reported:

Pastor Danny Poss said the community has been instrumental in helping them move forward in the recovery process. Throughout the week, the congregation has worked to salvage what it could from the storms, including many of their prized possessions. After all they have endured, officials say the cleanup progress wouldn’t have been made possible without the community and many other churches.

The article from the station's website relates:

The church is also planning to move the steeple torn from the church to the front of the newly built church in remembrance of those lost and what the community endured. On Easter Sunday, the congregation plans to hold service on the church grounds and this will mark their first service after the storm.

The headline from the Advertiser used the words from Joshua Farmer, "Not sure why I'm here."  I think that God will use the tragedies, the crises in our lives, to bring us closer to Himself, to think about the brevity and the value of life.  Perhaps Mr. Farmer will experience a fresh consideration of his life's purpose - all of us can use those times of difficulty to evaluate how we can grow closer to God. 

For 175 years, the church in Ohatchee has "been there," too.  And, despite the heavy damage, it is determined to stay there, to rebuild its facility and it even, as the article noted, planned to meet on Easter Sunday without a building.  Because, the church is not a building - certainly a facility is great to house worship and church programs, to be a central gathering place, but at a time in which this church is needed in the community more than ever, it is a time for the people to engage in ministry to others.  We come together at our churches in order to fellowship and learn, so that we are equipped to serve - as the church - each day.