The summer and fall of 2011 was the worst recorded drought in Texas. The picture to the left depicts it well. Here are only a few of the headlines copied from major newspapers.
- Drought, Morton, school finance top headlines in 2011
2011 Drought Worries Farmers and Ranchers
- Fireworks show changes due to drought
- Worst Texas Drought in 44 Years Damaging Wheat Crop, Reducing Cattle Herds
At one time 99% of the counties in Texas were under a burn ban. Fireworks-- even professionally conducted--were forbidden. Our lakes were at the lowest ever recorded. One of the top stories was of a man arrested for driving a car across the lake. Fires in Texas were rampant. Firefighters from 43 states came to help. The small town of Bastrop lost 600 homes in one fire. It was reported that 47.3% of all the acreage burned in the United States in 2011 was actually in Texas. During the three weeks of September 4- 30, 1,645 homes were lost to fire, 34,068 acres burned, and two people were killed. It was the second most severe drought in history. The most severe being 1917. Suffice it to say, we were desperate. We were asked to pray for rain. Some of us were considering participating in rain dances. We would have done anything we could for rain.
Today burn bans have been lifted and we have been blessed with more than average rainfall in December and January. However, much of Texas remains in a drought and predicted to remain classified that way for another year.
On the local news last night, the weather forecaster predicted rain for the next two days. Immediately, the news anchor began complaining about the terrible weather. She didn't like the rain. Is that not typical of human beings? We complain no matter what we are given. I can visualize God pulling his hair out when he hears us complaining. It reminds me of what I heard a preacher say one time. "Some people are going to complain no matter what. If you gave them a million dollars, they'd complain it wasn't in small bills." The first chapter of Genesis records the story of creation. Six times in that chapter it is recorded "and God saw that it was good." If God saw that it was good when he made it, what right do we have to complain when we get it?
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