May 21, 2025 Sirens
Sirens
“So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.”
1 Thessalonians 5:6 (NIV)
On Sunday night, I was washing dishes when my phone alarm went off—an alert reserved only for severe weather. I quickly popped open Facebook and pulled up the Texas Storm Chasers livestream video, only to see the self-proclaimed “Baldy-in-Chief” weather reporter David Reimer zooming in on Highway 380 in Prosper, right where we live, announcing a Tornado Warning. Then, the storm sirens started.
It was 9:30 PM, just an hour after the kids fell asleep. Now came the question every North Texas parent knows: do we wake them up and bring them to the laundry room, or ride it out?
I’d be willing to venture that the answer to this question for a lot of North Texas parents would be, “depends on how long you’ve lived here.”
If you’ve lived here long enough, you’ve seen false alarms—but also storms that don’t give second chances. So our rule is simple: if the sirens sound and the Baldy-in-Chief says it’s close, we move. We laid down blankets, grabbed a flashlight, and carried the kids into the laundry room. Hazel didn’t even wake up, but Hudson rolled around, occasionally drumming on the washer with his feet by accident.
It’s not dramatic. It’s not panicked. It’s just preparation.
And it made me wonder—what if we treated spiritual warnings the same way?
Paul writes, “So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.” (1 Thessalonians 5:6)
It’s easy to ignore the signs: bitterness creeping in, relationships drifting, time with God slipping away. The cost of paying attention may seem inconvenient, but the cost of ignoring the warning is far greater. And responding doesn’t have to be dramatic—it might just mean a quiet prayer, a hard conversation, or a moment of honesty with God.
Storms will come. But through God’s mercy, we’re often given sirens. The question is: are we listening?
Reflect:
- Is there a spiritual siren in your life right now that you’ve been tempted to ignore?
- What’s one small, faithful step you can take this week to respond rather than react?
Pray: Gracious God, thank You for the quiet – and sometimes not so quiet – warnings that guide and protect us. Help us stay awake to Your voice and respond with wisdom and trust. Give us the courage to act before the storm hits. Amen.
With faith, hope, and love,
Eric Smith