Strike!

It rains a lot at Mahaffey. Well, it seems to rain a lot when I am there. Thus, the nickname - "Mud-haffey."

When I say "Mahaffey," I mean PA. I also mean the Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA) camp. It is where my wife, Dondra, would spend a couple of weeks every summer when CMAers from every corner of western PA would come together to make a unique Christian community.

Saturday night, it was raining in Mahaffey - again. In fact, it was more than just rain. It was a good old-fashioned thunderstorm. Lots of lightning. Lots of thunder. A perfect night to sit on your porch and watch the wonder of it all.

JJ, Natalie, Elizabeth, Joel and I were sitting on the porch enjoying the storm. It was spectacular! And as we counted out the seconds between the lightning and the thunder, we knew that many of the strikes were close to camp.

Just as we made that comment, we saw a tree light up less than 100' from our porch. Whether the light went from top to bottom or bottom to top (or both), we can't say. The strike happened - so fast! But we do know that wood splinters were everywhere. Some were as large as 6' long and as smooth as a saw cut.

It was terrifying and awesome all at the same time. We were shaking with delight. It was one of those events that sort of marks you. You begin to realize that you are not much in control.

"The Heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork."