There's so much more...

If you haven't already noticed or heard about the crazy weather that is happening in Sioux Falls, SD, let me fill you in a little bit (for those that have, bear with me). Tuesday morning started out with a steady rain, and a power outage in our house, along with 35,000 others without power in the city. It continued to rain, then sleet, then hail, throughout the day, even turning into snow around 7:00 that night. Each time I went out to my car I had to hack my way through the ice. I knew that there was a lot of falling branches and power lines (the falling branches sounded eerily like gunshot), but I really had no idea of the scope of damage outside of our Augustana bubble until one of my roommates and I ventured onto the roads. Huge branches lay in yards, having been cleared from the streets, and one car's back windshield was smashed through. Later that night as I drove down 26th St by McKennan park, half of a tree had fallen onto a house, and there was still so many more branches falling.
I will say that I was annoyed by the lack of power in our house because that meant we couldn't cook any food... or keep the house warm. But I barely thought twice about it when my roommate filled a bowl full of hot water in order to melt the ice off her car door so that we could go get food and coffee. Later, I asked another roommate if the toilets would work, and yes, they did. I went to a restaurant that night and then watched a movie while drinking warm tea. Last night I slept in the house, in a sleeping bag with a few blankets. This morning I brushed my teeth with running (albeit very cold) water.
And so, I'm just blown away by how blessed we are.
How the electricity going out is just a "minor" inconvenience for our house:

• Even though we don't have power, we still having running water and a roof over our heads to shield us from most of the cold.

• We have friends and family that will take us in and shelter us.

• We have restaurants and coffee shops and a college to buy food from.

In all reality, we personally (my housemates and I) really have nothing to complain about. The power will hopefully be restored soon and we will continue with our daily activities. Not having power made me not only realize how much I depend on it, but really opened my eyes to just how blessed I am to be able to use all these other things to get by without it. There are many, many people who don't have most of the things that I mentioned above, and have to make due with what they do have.
So my question is, what are we dependent on? So many times we fill our lives with things that we think will satisfy that ache within us, but really will only leave us empty in the end.

"The grass withers, and the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever."

 -Isaiah 40:8

We get annoyed and complain when the things that we are dependent on are taken away from us, but God will satisfy our desires, not necessarily the way that we want or think, but according to His will and His steadfast love for us.

"Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days."

 -Psalm 90:14

"Shout for joy to God, all the earth; sing the glory of his name; give to him glorious praise! Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you. All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name."

-Psalm 66: 1-4

We forget that our purpose in life isn't to collect these things, but to glorify God and praise Him for His wondrous and mighty deeds, and to see His kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. He calls us to feed the poor, clothe the naked, bring water to the thirsty, and to proclaim liberty to the captives (Isaiah 58:6-11; 61:1-3). He tells us to go forth and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:16-20). Not for our own glory, but so that He would be glorified and that the peoples would praise Him.
I'm trying to learn how God is calling me to do these things, and it's been a difficult journey at times, but it's been so worth it. I pray that we rest assured that He is leading us onward and that we know that His ways are infinitely greater than our own. There's just so much more waiting for us...

"Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."

-Ephesians 3:20-21