The Gospel of Matthew...the Hurricane
By Jeff Moffitt
@moffittjc (128854)
Gainesville, Florida
October 3, 2016 9:52pm CST
All week long, the Weather Channel, the National Hurricane Center, and other weather "experts" (and I do use the term loosely) have preached to us Floridians that the hurricane track of Matthew was going to keep the storm well offshore in the Atlantic. "Trust us...you have nothing to worry about!"
Well, according to the Gospel of Matthew (the hurricane), the track has now shifted further west, bringing much of Florida into the dreaded Cone of Uncertainty.
What began as excitement for the upcoming weekend has now shifted to dread as we have to prepare for the arrival of a major hurricane. Already much of the stores have sold out of bottled water, and certainly things will get worse in the coming days as the storm draws closer.
I ask for your prayers for the people of Haiti, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Bahamas, and now Florida, asking the Good Lord to spare millions of people from the wrath of Matthew.
19 people like this
14 responses
@teresatrotter (4073)
• Jacksonville, Florida
4 Oct 16
Well... Since I literally am on the ocean, I have grave concerns if I am even going to have a home left. I don't even have the gas money to evacuate. I have no idea what I am going to do.
4 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
Put it in God's hands, and trust that He'll take care of you!
3 people like this
@teresatrotter (4073)
• Jacksonville, Florida
4 Oct 16
@moffittjc - I have other issues, and I am not even sure God even wants to help me anymore.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
@teresatrotter I'm pretty sure He still cares about you.
2 people like this
@hereandthere (45628)
• Philippines
4 Oct 16
i know we have mylotters from dominican republic, jamaica, florida and north carolina so i do think about their safety.
4 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
The hurricane is hitting Haiti this morning, so right now my prayers go out to all the people of Haiti. Thousands of people could potentially lose their life from this storm.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
Unfortunately, it is going to travel along a path with a very high density of people, both in the Caribbean islands and along the eastern seaboard of the US. Millions of people are going to be impacted. It won't be as bad as Andrew was when it hit Miami, or Katrina when it hit New Orleans, but it will still cause some damage.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
6 Oct 16
There have been several deaths in Haiti. I haven't heard about The Bahamas yet or Cuba. I fear for the Florida coast. I hope everyone takes this seriously.
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
6 Oct 16
@moffittjc Yes, millions will be impacted, for sure. I've been watching it closely.
1 person likes this
@1creekgirl (44560)
• United States
4 Oct 16
You all are already in my prayers. We're in NC, so please pray for us and all along the east coast also. There are many examples in the Bible of when God parted waters, so He certainly can turn this hurricane away from us. Whether He chooses to do that or not, we still have to trust Him because He does love us.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
I'll be praying for all of you up there in NC, as well as everyone else along the eastern seaboard. No matter how you look at it, this storm sucks for everyone.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
4 Oct 16
Yes, it certainly looks like the whole eastern seaboard might be affected. I live in central Virginia, but we are still expecting torrential rain.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
Based on what I'm seeing this morning, if the storm hugs the eastern coast like it's forecast to do, I could get 80-100 mph (130-160 km) winds where I live, and 5-7inches of rain. Not looking forward to this at all.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
@IreneVincent But with a storm as powerful as Matthew is, being inland isn't going to be much of a saving grace, except for avoiding the storm surge. But we have a very heavy tree canopy, so any intensity hurricane is going to do a lot of damage in Gainesville by knocking down many, many trees.
1 person likes this
@IreneVincent (15960)
• United States
4 Oct 16
@moffittjc Florida is in for a good soaking, I'm sure. In Gainesville you are in the northern part of Florida and about halfway between the two coasts. I hope it turns away from the coast before it gets that far north.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Oct 16
Is your condo on the east coast? For some reason, I thought you were on the west coast of Florida.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Oct 16
@DianneN Haha, that's right!!!! How can I forget! God, I hope everything ends up being okay with your condo! It's already getting nasty down there!
1 person likes this
@DianneN (254926)
• United States
6 Oct 16
@moffittjc East. You know, Lake Worth.
1 person likes this
@LovingMyBabies (85923)
• Valdosta, Georgia
5 Oct 16
I will be praying for everyone's safety. Let's hope it doesn't hit any of us!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Oct 16
I'll be praying for your safety too! You're closer to the coast than I am!
1 person likes this
@LovingMyBabies (85923)
• Valdosta, Georgia
5 Oct 16
I hope by God's grace that it will just turn and go out into the ocean. I will be praying for all of our safety.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
Yes, definitely need to pray on this one! Just one slight jog to the left and we could be taking a direct hit! I'm not prepared for that! And I live inland! It must be a little more worrisome for you being so close to the coast.
1 person likes this
@Freelanzer (10782)
• Canada
5 Oct 16
Since I have relatives living in the Caribbean I always take the news with dread, not excitement. It is a horrible experience from what I hear - just the waiting for the "strike" is terrifying. So prayers are always in order for all the folks living in those areas.
1 person likes this
@JamesHxstatic (29410)
• Eugene, Oregon
4 Oct 16
You and all the unfortunates in the path of this major storm certainly have my good wishes and hopes that it will slow to a harmless wind soon.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
4 Oct 16
Thanks James! I just hope that it trends toward the eastern edge of its cone of uncertainty. The farther east it tracks, the better.
1 person likes this
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
6 Oct 16
I have been praying since I heard the news about this hurricane and heard about a couple myLotter's here who are under an evacuation order. I was also worried for my brother who is going to Disney World, but the hurricane will be well past by the time they arrive - I hope. I went to FB to see if there were any dates posted for his trip and found it 22-29. So I'm breathing a prayer of thanks while I offer up prayers for everyone in the wake of this murderous hurricane.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Oct 16
That storm better be gone by then, because I'll be at Disney at that same time (28-30)!
So now they're saying that this hurricane could skirt the coast up to the Carolinas, then loop back into the Atlantic, make a big circle, and come back and potentially hit Florida again. so...if it does do that, then maybe we are not safe at Disney at the end of the month!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Oct 16
@just4him That was hurricane Ivan that hit us 12 years ago! I thought seeing that happen was a once in a lifetime event, but now it appears that it is feasible that it will happen again!
2 people like this
@just4him (323168)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
6 Oct 16
@moffittjc My prayers are definitely with everyone in it's path. There was a hurricane a few years ago that wouldn't go away and did the same thing, looping around and hitting everyone for a second time.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
That's what's bad about this hurricane...if it hugs the eastern seaboard, it is going to affect tens of millions of people all the way up to Canada.
1 person likes this
@HazySue (39265)
• Gouverneur, New York
5 Oct 16
@moffittjc we are as prepared as we can get. I pray that everyone else that will be affected will be ok.
1 person likes this
@HazySue (39265)
• Gouverneur, New York
8 Oct 16
@moffittjc too late, the stores are empty. 
1 person likes this
@Elizaby (6902)
• Pensacola, Florida
5 Oct 16
One report earlier today said the formation of tropical storm Nicole is what is making Matthew come more west and reports are saying that matthew will skirt up the east coast. do gald there was a trough that turned it north and kept it out of the Gulf
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
It's final path is going to depend on the approaching cold front that is currently in the midwest. The faster the cold front gets to Florida the farther east the hurricane will stay. If the cold front is slow to get to Florida, then the hurricane will track further west.
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
4 Oct 16
That is scary, Keep safe. I will pray
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (128854)
• Gainesville, Florida
5 Oct 16
Thanks Faye! This is a really nerve-wracking storm for all of us along the east coast. We've been long overdue for a hurricane to take a direct hit on us, and it looks like this may be the year. We're still recovering from Hurricane Hermine, and now we have Matthew to deal with.
