On an early summer’s morning, in late July 1984, an earthquake shook large portions of Britain. Measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale, it was the most powerful tremor felt in Britain for a century: The last comparable earthquake rocked the eastern country of Essex in 1884. The earthquake affected the western part of the land. Its epicentre was in the little inhabited mountain region of Snowdonia in North Wales, but it was felt across a wide area from North Ireland to Leicestershire, and from North Lancashire to Bristol.
Relating the incident on BBC Radio, Tim Richards had this to say on the weekly programme, “The Week in Wales”: “I think we are all much humbler as a result (of the tremor), and more respectful of nature.”
Earthquakes are a very rare occurrence in the British Isles. Usually, the ground rests firm beneath people’s feet. But sometimes, once in a while, it is shaken. Thus, God shows to people His power. Under what miraculous conditions He has set the ground in place! Resting on molten rock, and whirling around space at a phenomenal speed, it is nevertheless firm.
When a person remembers this, he humbles himself before the Lord; he sees his true position in the world. People who are alive to God’s silent but poignant message in nature, humble themselves before Him, when signs like earthquakes manifest themselves.