This morning’s Daily Mail from the UK reported this chilling bit of news: 
*18 people have died across Europe as a result of last week’s torrential rains, 
and “its warned River Seine could swell to 21 feet above its normal level.” 
*Last night, the flood was 6.10 meters (20 feet) high. 
(Compare the above picture to this picture I took a few weeks ago.)
I can’t imagine this is happening, but it is. 
I’d been working on a post about the romantic Seine, but now it’s on a rampage. 
The Louvre and Musée d’Orsay, where we visited under blue skies last month, 
are shut down and dozens of volunteers are scrambling to save 
some 38,000 works of art by transporting them to higher floors. 
The Grand Palais exhibition center, two National Libraries, 
and some of the subways have also shut down. 
What was so life-giving and peaceful has become deadly! 
But, let me back up and tell you about my experience of the River Seine in May
and then bring us back to today. 
The River Seine winds like a silver snake from Source-Seine for 777 km 
through Paris and out to the English Channel at La Havre. 
When we flew across the channel from London,
it was the striking focal point of my enraptured gaze (since I mustn’t stare at the sun); I sat transfixed, watching it shimmer in the sunset. 
The Seine River nourishes all the fertile farmland of the Paris Basin, 
and from time immemorial it’s been France’s major commercial shipping artery. 
The Lower Seine is dredged, so it’s navigable by ocean-going vessels to Rouen, 
which is 75 miles inland from the English Channel. 
Smaller vessels can ply the river’s waterways past Rouen, through Paris,
and much beyond.
The River Seine is a celebrated destination for painters and lovers alike
because it symbolizes all that is romance and beauty in Paris! 
This magnificent river cuts through the heart of Paris, 
roughly dividing the city in half, with the “Left Bank” being the southern half,
or the “left” bank if you’re looking downstream (although this view is upstream). 
Historically, the Left Bank was the Latin Quarter, dwelling place of artists, 
writers, poets, philosophers and students…the creative dreamers and thinkers. 
The Right Bank is alive with commerce and business. 
But, just like the “right brain” and “left brain” myths have been debunked, 
the Left Bank and Right Bank have succumbed to the “East” and “West,” 
and although there are still distinct flavors to each side, 
the city is brimming with life, business, and feasting late into the night
on both sides of the River Seine. 
We stayed on rue des Lombards almost under the shadow of Notre Dame
on the Right Bank, but I dare say the streets were still overflowing at midnight! 
Within the city of Paris, there are 37 bridges across the Seine, 
the oldest being Pont Neuf, dating back to 1607. 
When we visited in May, we stayed in the heart of the city and walked along the Seine every day to reach our destinations, most of which were near the river! 
It never once crossed my mind to fear the river. 
It was beautiful, nurturing…full of vitality and life! 
In some ways, that reminds me of how I feel about Jesus,
who is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). 
However, there’s a second half to John 14:6, and that says,
“No man cometh unto the Father but by me.” 
Those who trust in Him can go safely to the Father in peace. 
But, God will reject those who refuse his Son, 
and at the end of the world, there will be torrential downpour of judgment more deadly than the River Seine when it rages.
“But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.” (Amos 5:24)
“And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:15-17) 
“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.” (Revelation 20: 11-12;15) 
“Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him [Jesus] whom he [God] hath sent.” (John 6:28-29)
(*The two photos labeled AFP images and Golf Photos are from today’s Daily Mail, June 30, 2016, found here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3625100/Paris-drowning-Workers-build-makeshift-bridges-swollen-River-Seine-reach-stricken-areas-France-suffers-worst-floods-100-years-forcing-city-total-shutdown.html The rest are from our trip to France in May, 2016.)
