A backpack, unbearably heavy and light

Photo courtesy/Du Xiuxiang

In fact, you still don’t know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You turned out to be a cloud, appearing for a short time and then disappearing. ” (James 4:14)

On the evening of August 27, the rain became heavier and heavier. Before six o'clock, the sky was already pitch black, as if an unfathomable black hole had been opened. From there, tons of rain poured back into Texas and poured into Houston, which has become a vast ocean. . Roads outside homes were flooded and highways turned into fast-flowing rivers. By now, tornado and flood warnings were blaring on cellphones every few minutes, adding to the panic. To avoid a flood, you have to go to the second floor, but to avoid a tornado, you have to hide in the cloakroom on the first floor. My husband and I, who grew up on the Loess Plateau, didn't know whether to run upstairs or hide downstairs.

▲Prayer brings peace to the author Du Xiuxiang, because prayer gives people courage. In the face of powerful challenges, brave police officers also use prayer to express their needs and concerns. The picture shows more than a hundred Fort Worth police officers praying urgently before going to Houston for rescue. This shocking photo quickly spread through various social platforms. "Prayer is powerful, we know that," said Fort Worth Police Superintendent Dr. Joel Fitzgerald, "but sometimes prayers are not received." President Trump also tweeted about the image , calling them heroes and declaring the Sunday after the hurricane a national day of prayer. (pictures from the Internet)

The meaning of a backpack

Everyone in the WeChat circle reminded each other to prepare escape arrangements. Someone began to prepare wooden planks that could be used as boats in times of crisis. We packed up our personal documents and put our passports, citizenship papers, daily wallets (containing driver's licenses, credit cards, etc.), notarial certificates, son's graduation certificates, and floppy disks containing some information and photos in a backpack. . I originally wanted to take some photos of my son when he was a child, but there were too many of them and they were too heavy to take away once he escaped, so I had to give up. Fortunately, my son happens to be at home on vacation, and the most important thing is for the family to be together at this time.

I looked at the porcelain, vases, and decorations that I usually like to collect, and they were quietly scattered throughout the house. The clothes in the entire room were also silent. Those are all things that cannot be taken away. There are too many of them, and they are too heavy to bear in times of life crisis.

I looked at the backpack again. It was not full and I could easily pick it up with one hand. After coming to the United States for twenty years, this is all the possessions we need now! At that time, I was filled with emotions. Everything I had accumulated, liked, and purchased seemed to be useless at this time.

After everything was packed and human efforts had been exhausted, we had no control over or knowledge of the remaining things. So after the whole family prayed together, the husband said, "Okay, sleep peacefully. There is nothing we can do now." This is indeed the case. Previously, I was jumping up and down at home, checking the rain outside, watching TV, checking WeChat, and wondering whether I needed to go north. I was very busy. By this time, I felt at ease and determined. I said over and over again, This is it, there is no other way, I have tried my best, leave everything to the Lord!

Lying in bed, listening to the raging wind and rain outside, I couldn’t help but think: If this is the end of the world, the day when the Lord returns, we won’t even need this backpack; what we can take away is the Lord. Bought at a heavy price.

Peace and courage for the weak and timid

In the early morning of August 28, when I opened my eyes, I found that my bed was not floating on the water, but there was an overwhelming amount of information about thousands of Houston residents who had been washed away from their homes by floods, including many brothers and sisters in the church and people I knew. friends. I shed tears and sent a message on WeChat: "Pray for Houston, ask God to have mercy on this land, and ask God to protect and save the people here. Surrender in everything, always give thanks, praise always, and pray without ceasing. The Lord will give you peace, and the Lord loves you." Be with us too!" and then attached the lyrics of the hymn "You Are Sit King" and the YouTube song. This WeChat message is to thank the Lord for His protection and a safe night; it is to comfort the brothers, sisters and friends who are affected by the disaster, and encourage them to look to God in their troubles; it is also to report peace to mothers and family members in China, and hopes that relatives and friends who have not believed in the Lord can read it See how the great love and deeds of Jesus demonstrated His power and wonder in me who was once weak and even as timid as a mouse. I used to be a person who could lose my composure and get easily flustered when encountering the smallest things. But last night, I was able to have peace and have a peaceful sleep because of looking up and trusting in trouble.