The Voice

The ground started shaking at 5:36 pm on Good Friday in 1964, and did not stop for almost 5 minutes. The 9.2 magnitude earthquake, and its 52 aftershocks – 11 of which were over 6.0, devastated Anchorage, Alaska.

The neighborhood of Turnagain Heights was partially destroyed as the ground sloughed away in a landslide. Parts of downtown Anchorage shook 11 feet side-to-side, and entire buildings sank 10 to 14 feet below street level. One eyewitness saw a building in downtown Anchorage crack open and reclose as it shook. Destruction was everywhere.

As described in the book This Is Chance! by Jon Mooallem, the voice of Genie Chance, a reporter for radio station KENI, held Anchorage together. After the quake struck, she headed to the Public Safety Building, set up the mobile VHF transmitter she used for reporting live events, and began broadcasting. As she went on the air, she realized, “I was responsible for reassuring them that the world had not come to an end.”

Genie was on the air for 59 hours straight. As Mooallem describes, in addition to providing updates from officials, Genie listed locations of shelters, directed City equipment and personnel where they were needed, assured the public there was no food shortage, told volunteers where to go, explained where to find a list of missing persons, announced which streets were impassable, and relayed personal messages between separated and worried friends and families. Mooallem says the information helped stabilize people, and quotes one man who said, “Genie Chance … was telling everyone, ‘You’re not alone.’”

When our world gets devastated, we all need to hear a stabilizing voice. Throughout Scripture, God promises He is that voice.

Promises like, He is always with us (Joshua 1:9).

He is listening to us (Jeremiah 29:12).

We will be protected (Isaiah 43:2).

He is a shield for us (Psalm 5:12).

He renews our strength (Isaiah 40:31).

He already has future plans for us which are filled with hope  (Jeremiah 29:11).

Everything eventually leads to something good for us (Romans 8:28).

He assures us, “Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed” (Isaiah 54:10). And if we truly believe in Him and trust in His promises, we will be calm in the midst of chaos, and can be that reassuring voice to others.

Whose voice do you listen to when your world gets upended?

The Atlantic compiled an excellent collection of images in 2014 depicting the devastation caused by the earthquake and tsunami, which can be seen at this link.