Will We Ever Get Global Warming?

Well, the groundhog saw his shadow. So what does it mean? Besides the fact that there was enough sun for him to see a shadow, it means absolutely nothing. “But refuse profane and old wives' fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness.” (1 Timothy 4:7) In spite of the truth, this little varmint has become famous for predicting how long the winter will be. According to this years prediction we can expect 6 more weeks of what we have already been putting up with (well, a few less than that by now). Yes, this is turning into a memorable winter.
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I must admit that I kind of enjoy pushing all the snow though. I doubt I would enjoy it so much if didn’t have a skid steer to use. It sure is fun to ram into a snow bank and just see how far I can push it before I have to back up and hit it again. It is also fun to spin that thing around on a dime. If I did the same thing with the van, I’d risk rolling it or getting a ticket. This year, however, I have begun to wonder if I will run out of places to push all the snow.
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As much fun as I have playing on the skid steer, I look forward to all this snow melting. In fact, I have joked for years that I am in favor of global warming because I like the summer temperatures much better than the cold winters.
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In all honesty, I must disclose that I have long been a global warming skeptic. I believe God is in control of the weather, not man. It has been interesting to listen to all the debate and even the recent scandals surrounding this subject, but does the Scripture have anything to say about weather patterns?
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Psalm 148:8 tells us how meteorological activity is actually directed by the word of God. “Fire, and hail; snow, and vapour; stormy wind fulfilling his word:” This tells us that all God has to do is speak and the weather obeys Him. Not only can Christ calm the storm, but God sends the storms or holds them back at His will. “And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.” (Amos 4:7)
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I love to watch and listen to thunderstorms. I recently had the chance to preach on Psalm 29. This Psalm uses the language of thunderstorms, and it describes the different features of what was likely a powerful supercell. Over and over again through the chapter we read that the voice of God was upon these different parts of the storm. Now that is not hard to imagine when we think of thunder, but as we reflect on Ps 148:8 as well, let us not forget that the voice/word of God directs all the aspects of the weather.
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I can’t tell you how much longer our winter will be or how much more snow we will have, but God knows. I don’t even know if the earth will warm up or cool down in the next few years, but God knows. I do however know that one day, global warming will occur and it will be far worse than anything Al Gore is suggesting. “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” (II Peter 3:10)
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Nothing we can do will be able to prevent this warming. The only way to make sure we are not burned up is to trust Christ as our Savior. Consider the verse right after II Peter 3:10. “Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness”. This whole earth will be burnt up and dissolved before a new heaven and earth are made. Because the earth belongs to God- not us, we should take care of it, but we must also keep it in perspective. The earth will be gone, but God will remain. Who should we put or greater focus on? I will focus on God.