From time to time, natural disasters happen close enough together to make people ask if the world is crumbling. I find it interesting that after today’s 8.8 quake in Chile, MSNBC has a story called Big Quake Question: Are They Getting Worse. The story asks if the recent Haiti, Japan and Chile earthquakes signal that the earth is entering a phase of upheaval. A similar question for our purposes is, Did God send the disasters? In a word, No. Though, Pat Robertson may soon voice an opinion otherwise.

I firmly believe that Genesis 3 reports that the earth is somewhat in a state of chaos. After God changed the relationships between humanity and the earth, what some would call post-fall, there is a vastly different reality than when Genesis one reports the earth is “good” in God’s sight. In my mind, this is where the idea of Creation as a continuing process comes into play. God is constantly in a state of routing the chaos present in the earth. God can use natural disasters to bring judgment, certainly. But more frequently, these times serve as a reminder that were it not for a good, loving God, these instances would be the norm and not the exception.

Let me know what you think…

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