Covering all the bases?

Begin by playing the playing the video clip “Hitchhiking Chicken.” November 4th is the date of the coming disaster! According to Carla Prater, a researcher for the Texas A&M Hazard Reduction and Recovery Center, “The Texas coast is fragile”. The Houston Chronicle story, The lessons of Carla may be forgotten makes the point that in recent years many miles of the Gulf coastline in places like west Galveston Island have become lined with expensive homes. The article says, “History has taught that such places will inevitably be pounded and probably destroyed by future hurricanes.” Wow! Do we have a “chicken little” story, or what?

Much has been written in the Chronicle about how Houston is unprepared for a category 4 or 5 hurricane. Damage could be as high as 40 to 50 billion dollars with thousands of lives lost. Do people doubt such a hurricane will hit Texas? Yes. Do costal residents disregard the warnings? Absolutely. Who are they listening to when they purchase large, expensive homes on the coast? They listen to their own desires. Idols are stumbling blocks.

We might find it difficult to believe that people of Judah could still worship idols, doubt God’s Word, or disregard it, after many are already in captivity and the Babylonians are laying siege to the city of Jerusalem. However, they did consult the prophets in an effort to “cover all their religious bases,” but in reality they excluded the Lord. Gulf coast residents are similarly ignoring the warnings of what can happen one day when a large storm hits the coast. Their “live for today” mentality and instant gratification desires are very deceiving. They breed the “stumbling block” that disaster won’t happen, which defeats common sense.

What stumbling blocks are we tripping over today that cause us to exclude Christ?