Why do we seniors watch the Weather Channel, even when there’s no hurricane? It’s not like we have to get the hay in before the rain. I know the reason, though.  It’s not as depressing as the News.

Short term weather forecasting is pretty easy. If you predict tomorrow’s weather by looking out your window today, you will be right the majority of the time. The old ditty “Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky at morning, sailor take warning” also does a very good job.  Today the Weather Channel can do still better; it does a good job predicting the weather two or three days out and a fair job four or five days out. The Weather Channel uses data from scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who use high speed computers to calculate approximate solutions to the equations that govern weather. Unfortunately, these equations are such that small changes in input can make massive changes in output. Since current data will always contain small errors, nature herself makes long range forecasting almost impossible.

Did you know that Jesus knew meteorology? In Matthew 16 we find Jesus responding to a group of Pharisees and Sadducees, who were confronting him. Jesus tells them that although they can predict the weather, mentioning their knowledge of the old ditty above, they cannot interpret the sign of the times. He says, “A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days, and Jesus is using this to foretell his own death and resurrection. What does this episode say to us? It doesn’t mean that we have to quit watching the Weather Channel, but rather that even today we should look to Jesus; His death and resurrection should be our sign of the times. Read Matthew 16:1-4 and remember: God loves YOU unconditionally.

Jim

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven. He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. Matthew 16:1-4