The Heat and The Drought

Texas is in dire straights concerning our drought.  Most of the state is under the category of "exceptional drought".   In our area we are just "extreme drought".  To me it sounds bad whichever term you use.  The leaves are falling off our trees.  The ground is cracked.  Our gardens are gone.  Too hot, too dry.  Today we are expecting temps of 106 and honestly I don't even want to know what the heat index will be for the day.  It will be our 24th day in a row of 100 or above temps.   We are over 30 days for the season of just such days.  1980 remains the record holder though.   When I was outside working this morning, I kept thinking how blessed we are compared to the pioneer days.  Our garden is gone, but we can shop for food.  We are not dependant on our crops for maintaining our lives.   Peoples wells are drying up but we have water all the same.  Our house is not as cool as some but its still comfortable.  We keep it about 85 inside.  I visited an old home in the next town, and saw where so long ago, someone penciled on the wall of the closet that it was 114 degrees that day way back in 1902.   We have much to be thankful for these days.   I am reminded of Jeremiah 17:7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”  To trust in the Lord, gives us life.  Its easy to see the lesson right now in these verses.  The contrast is real between being by living waters and living outside of that place.    My heart goes out to the farmers and ranchers whose livelihood depends on rain.   We are living in troubled times, yet faith and hope sustain us.