Seismic Surprises
Mark John Ostrum - 2004-10-01 00:00:00
This has been an active week on the west coast. On September 28, a 6.0 magnitude earthquake hits Parkfield, CA, followed by hundreds of aftershocks up to 5.0 magnitude. On September 29 a 5.0 earthquake struck Arvin, CA, about 140 miles away. Seismologists report that the two events were not related. They also said that there is a chance, small though it is, that both of them could possibly be foreshocks to a larger quake somewhere else in or near California. They base this statement on the fact that a significant earthquake hit the Salton Sea, CA area shortly before the big Northridge earthquake in 1994. Seismologists are excited about the current flurry of seismic activity in central California as it provides them with a lot of useful data for their research and hope to use it to aid in earthquake predictions.
On October 1, Mount St. Helens began eruption activities. It has been 24 years since the big eruption that blew off the top of the mountain in 1980. Scientists who have been watching the region reported before the event of October 1 that an eruption is likely, but that it probably would not be quite the size of the eruption in 1984.
Matthew 24 (Signs of the End of the Age) 1Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2"Do you see all these things?" he asked. "I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down."
3As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?"
4Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ, ' and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth pains.
We can watch the signs of the times. Like the beginnings of labor, they start far apart, then move closer and closer together during the delivery. It seems unusual that these seismic events are coming so close together and yet are totally unrelated. All along the Pacific Rim Of Fire there has been ongoing seismic activity for generations. We can see that the frequency is growing closer and closer overall, even though some years experience a significant drop in occurrances. The birth pains are growing closer together. The coming of our Lord is the highly awaited delivery.
But let us not worry or even be concerned about these things. So long as we are in Christ Jesus, we have only to find peace and joy as these events signal his imminent return. He could come before you finish reading this article. How joyous it will be when we all meet him in the air when he makes his final return to take us to heaven.
May God's blessings flow into you as we continue living through the millenium of the Lord, and await his final return. May his praise always be on our lips.