Do you see the face? A photo by Wes Snyder, Photographer
Yesterday I was looking through one of my favorite Outer Banks Facebook pages and came upon this awesome picture. It was taken in March of this year and it captured the power of a huge wave at the Outer Banks Fishing Pier during a nor'easter. The picture, taken by professional photographer Wes Snyder of Manteo, was impressive not just because of the fearsome wave, but also because of something else in the picture. Look to its right side in the pilings and see if you notice it, a face. Many viewers, including me, see the face of a bear peering out from the wave. Can that image be providing us with a prophetic warning?
I've seen many waves, some much bigger than this at Nags Head in massive storms and I've seen images in pictures from many perspectives. Clouds commonly show things to us and our imagination but there was just something that stuck with me about that bear face and for quite a long time yesterday I couldn't pin down exactly why that was. Then, all of a sudden it hit me like a brick and it was about a story I have been teaching in my adult Bible school class. The story comes from the Book of Daniel in Chapter 7 where he sees in his dream what will happen to great kingdoms, both in his time and later.
I won't repeat the story, it's readily there in the Bible for anyone to read, but I will comment on the impact of the bear. In Daniel's dream there was a large bear with three ribs in his mouth. He was vicious and deadly and he would destroy many people and a three kingdoms, the greatest of which was thought to be invincible. I saw in that picture taken by Wes Snyder a tragedy as well, but, don 't worry, I'm not gifted with the visionary power of Daniel. What it told me was not something that would destroy a great nation such as ours. It could, however, signify the future of those beautiful Outer Banks if mankind isn't more careful in what we do.
What do I mean? Well, I remember a great storm that ravaged the Outer Banks fifty-seven years ago next March and it was considered one of the ten worst East Coast storms of the twentieth century. I witnessed that storm and it's aftermath on the East Coast and that big wave reminded me of it. And while I'll write a special piece on the storm's fifty-seventh anniversary next year, suffice it to say that my memory of that time coupled with the picture shown here provides what I think is a warning for the future of the Outer Banks.
The Outer Banks are very fragile, they are mere islands of sand jutting out from the mainland and easily assaulted by nature. When that great and destructive storm in 1962 came, the Banks were lightly populated and the water had a way of being absorbed in the open lowlands. Today, however, those days are over and as man builds more and more without the infrastructure or capability of the natural environs to replenish itself, continued travel down the current road will likely lead to a disaster. And that visionary bear seen in that beautiful picture provided by Wes Snyder? Well, maybe, just maybe he's a replication of of Daniel's great bear who will devour the sandy islands with the mighty sea of which he is a part.
Think about it, folks, just think about. Never doubt the power of God and what He can do. Also never forget that we need to study history if we don't want to make the mistakes of our past. Put those two things together, God and history, and I think the answer is obvious.
I've seen many waves, some much bigger than this at Nags Head in massive storms and I've seen images in pictures from many perspectives. Clouds commonly show things to us and our imagination but there was just something that stuck with me about that bear face and for quite a long time yesterday I couldn't pin down exactly why that was. Then, all of a sudden it hit me like a brick and it was about a story I have been teaching in my adult Bible school class. The story comes from the Book of Daniel in Chapter 7 where he sees in his dream what will happen to great kingdoms, both in his time and later.
I won't repeat the story, it's readily there in the Bible for anyone to read, but I will comment on the impact of the bear. In Daniel's dream there was a large bear with three ribs in his mouth. He was vicious and deadly and he would destroy many people and a three kingdoms, the greatest of which was thought to be invincible. I saw in that picture taken by Wes Snyder a tragedy as well, but, don 't worry, I'm not gifted with the visionary power of Daniel. What it told me was not something that would destroy a great nation such as ours. It could, however, signify the future of those beautiful Outer Banks if mankind isn't more careful in what we do.
What do I mean? Well, I remember a great storm that ravaged the Outer Banks fifty-seven years ago next March and it was considered one of the ten worst East Coast storms of the twentieth century. I witnessed that storm and it's aftermath on the East Coast and that big wave reminded me of it. And while I'll write a special piece on the storm's fifty-seventh anniversary next year, suffice it to say that my memory of that time coupled with the picture shown here provides what I think is a warning for the future of the Outer Banks.
The Outer Banks are very fragile, they are mere islands of sand jutting out from the mainland and easily assaulted by nature. When that great and destructive storm in 1962 came, the Banks were lightly populated and the water had a way of being absorbed in the open lowlands. Today, however, those days are over and as man builds more and more without the infrastructure or capability of the natural environs to replenish itself, continued travel down the current road will likely lead to a disaster. And that visionary bear seen in that beautiful picture provided by Wes Snyder? Well, maybe, just maybe he's a replication of of Daniel's great bear who will devour the sandy islands with the mighty sea of which he is a part.
Think about it, folks, just think about. Never doubt the power of God and what He can do. Also never forget that we need to study history if we don't want to make the mistakes of our past. Put those two things together, God and history, and I think the answer is obvious.
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