And the earth shook...

"And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel from the Lord had descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it" Matthew 28:2

An earthquake occurred during the resurrection of Jesus, which we celebrate today as Easter Sunday. Coincidentally, this Easter Sunday, the earth shook, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Mexicali.  After a series of earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, and now Mexico, it comes as no surprise for some people to question what the point of all of the earthquakes are. Yes, scientifically, earthquakes happen because of a shift in the earth's plates, but is there some kind of meaning behind all of this?

If I found any meaning behind all of this shaking, I would say that the recent earthquakes can serve as a reminder for everyone to cherish life and to be prepared for whatever rolls our way. I do not see it as any sort of punishment, as I have heard some people say, but I do see the earthquakes as a sign from God. Maybe that we should treat our Earth, each other, and ourselves a little better.  As we have seen, life is nothing to take for granted, and rather than think of the earthquakes as a punishment, I see them as a wake up call. A wake up call that reminds us that life can be taken from us in an instant, without warning. Because of that, we should make sure to live life to its fullest.

So what does that even mean? Living life to the fullest. Well, in my world and in my perspective, living life to the fullest means taking any opportunities that come your way. Take the good with the bad, and let the bad become lessons for you to learn. I tend to try and live my life to the fullest by having a positive outlook on life and not dwell on the negative. It takes a lot of faith in God in order to have a positive outlook, especially when there are so many negative things that can or will occur. I have the belief that everything happens for a reason, so even if there are bad things that happen to me, I put my whole faith in God that that is part of His plan and everything will work itself out. God doesn't necessarily live my life for me, but I have faith that He has put me on a path. This path is filled with opportunities and it is up to me to take my positive outlook and encounter them. It may not always work out, or I may make mistakes but life is about living it to the fullest and learning.

"If someone prays for patience, do you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If they pray for courage, does God give them courage, or does he give them opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for their family to be closer, you think God zaps them with warm, fuzzy feelings? Or does he give them opportunities to love each other?" -Evan Almighty

So let us take what is thrown at us, whether it be an earthquake or a simple mistake, and learn from them and take the opportunities to grow so that we can live our life to the fullest.