Y2K

It was January 1, 2000.  Everyone that I knew was sighing with relief that the computer systems of the world didn’t shut down the previous midnight.  The biggest problem facing everyone was how to consume the stacks of canned food that had been stockpiled by many for the possible cyber disaster.

I was enjoying the morning with my feet up, watching television, drinking a cold Coke and eating microwave popcorn.

Suddenly, around 11 AM, the electricity went off.

“I don’t believe it!” I said to my wife.  “It happened.”

I stepped outside and waved to my neighbors, who were also scratching their heads.  Apparently, the entire neighborhood was out.

“Did it happen?” asked Bob, my neighbor from across the street.

“I’m not sure,” I replied, “But I’m going to find out.”

I jumped into my car and drove around the neighborhood.  The entire community was out of power.  People seemed on high alert, frightened because they weren’t prepared for this disaster.  I passed grocery stores, gas stations, and restaurants.  Everywhere, the power was out and people seemed confused.

Thinking that I should preserve all of the gasoline that I should, I drove home.

“What did you see, Honey?” my wife asked me as I entered the house.

“Well, I guess it happened.  The power is out everywhere.  People seem to be upset.  How’s our grocery situation?”

“We’re okay, I guess,” she replied, “At least for a few days.”

“We might need to walk over to the store to see if we can buy more.”

“They won’t be open if the power’s out, will they?”

“Oh yeah,” I said, scratching my head.

Then, suddenly, the electricity came back on.  That evening, the news reported that a large truck had crashed into the power plant, disrupting service to most of the city for a short time.

It’s easy to laugh at what happened now, but at the time, it was extremely unnerving.  It made me realize how very close many of us are to disaster at any moment of our lives.  It could be physical, financial, emotional, whatever…  It could hit us at any minute.

How can we be prepared for these uncertainties?  I’m convinced that we can try our best, but we are never completely safe on our own.  We have no choice but to rely on the Lord for our only true source of security.

Happy New Year.