deebeedee

Even as Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit tops the U.S. box-office in its opening over the weekend, the film’s studio warehouse in England is gutted by fire. All of their “sets, props, story boards and models from earlier productions” have been totally destroyed. Nick Park, Wallace & Gromit’s creator, has a good handle on things, however. Although it was bad news for the company, he says “it’s not a big deal” in light of world events. No one was hurt in the blaze, and all the archived film prints are safely stored somewhere else.

I must’ve been living in a bubble the past couple of days. I didn’t realize how devastating Hurricane Katrina has become until I launched my browser today. I’ve had minimum TV viewing, web surfing, radio listening and newspaper reading as I prepared for the kids’ first day of school, which was today. Here are a couple of quick links to places where we can make donations to help in the relief efforts:

Red Cross
Salvation Army

It saddened me deeply today to learn how many so far have perished from the devastating earthquake and resulting tidal waves that hit south Asian nations. Here are a couple of ways we here can help.

Here’s an amazing set of pictures showing a tidal wave engulf a Thai resort.

Sadly, the world also experienced an incredible number of catastrophes around the same time last year.

(Red Cross and UNICEF links via RBJ)

Landslides claim lives on both sides of the Pacific. 20,000 die in a 6.6-magnitude earthquake in Iran. Meat from a cow infected with mad cow disease is found in eight U.S. states. Unrest continues in the Middle East.

What are we to make of turmoil during this “season of peace”? The actual verse in the Bible that alludes to this peace says “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” This was declared by a heavenly host after an angel announced the birth of Jesus Christ to the shepherds. Peace in this context means the ending of hostility between God and man. God entered into this world in the person of Jesus Christ so that he may share in our human struggles and experiences. And ultimately, he was offered as the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Those “men on whom his favor rests” are those who, having been justified by faith, “have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

He assures us, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

“I think my happiest moment was when I found out two girls on Kauai got saved.”