Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Let It Snow?

He sends forth His commandment upon the earth,
His word runs swiftly.
He gives snow like wool;
He scatters frost like ashes.
Psalm 147:15-16

I think snow is one of the most beautiful things on this earth.  When it first comes down, the flakes are glistening and the ground glitters with icy beauty.  Of course, very shortly it turns ugly, with the dirt and leaves thrown up by the snow plows.  But in the first few moments, falling snow turns the landscape into a fairyland of white.

I would not, however, want to live in a place that received large amounts of snow in the winter.  More specifically, I would not want to live in Alaska.  Cordova, a coastal town about 150 miles east of Anchorage, has had record precipitation over the last few weeks, burying the town under an 18 foot blanket of snow.  Monday and Tuesday, 18 more inches were added to that total.  There is now a threat of an avalanche near the town’s airport.

Valdez is an oil port that is also laboring under heavy snow accumulation.  Cordova and Valdez normally get about 300 inches of snow accumulation per year.  They have received more than that amount in the last 60 days.  These two communities are among the best-prepared on earth for inclement weather conditions, but these storms have pushed them far behind despite their best efforts.

Currently a Russian tanker carrying over a million gallons of fuel and a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker are endeavoring to reach Nome, Alaska in a first-ever attempt to bring fuel to an Alaskan settlement through sea ice.  Breaking through ice ridges as high as 4 feet and plate ice up to two feet thick, the convoy hopes to come within a half mile of Nome by late Thursday or early Friday.  The fuel will then be transferred to on-shore storage by hose.  The temperature in Nome is running 25ยบ below zero, making even on-shore preparations difficult.

Take a moment today to pray for the people of these hardest-hit areas of Alaska, especially for families and the elderly who might be subject to roof collapse or running out of fuel.  We are fellow travelers on the journey of life, and the best gift we can give to those who are so far removed from us is our genuine concern and uplifting them in prayer.

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