Dear Woodland Hills Family,
As Hurricane Isaac pounds the Gulf Coast (7 years to the day after Hurricane Katrina), we’re holding our collective breath and wondering aloud, Will the levees hold?
Isaac’s winds weren’t as disastrous as Katrina’s, but Isaac just slowed to a crawl and dumped enormous amounts of rain. The storm surge plus the rain-swollen waterways are taxing the levees tremendously. Will the straining levees hold?
Levees that are holding but near the breaking point offer a vivid picture of two urgent warnings Jesus gave us:
Hold on to what you have until I come. *
Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. ^
As a Christ-follower, the strain to hold on is every bit as real as an about-to-burst levee. Sometimes you’re sure you can’t hold on a second longer. The pressure alone is about to destroy your levee. On top of that the waves pound you relentlessly.
Yet the alternative is absolutely terrifying. Letting go would be catastrophic! To you… to others…
Maybe that’s why Jesus spoke so urgently: Hold on!
He knows it’s tough. He knows the pressures you face. He knows your strength is nearly gone. He knows. But it will be worth it! Just hold on a little longer! Hold on!
