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God in the Whirlwind: Stories of Grace from the Tornado at Union University

God in the Whirlwind: Stories of Grace from the Tornado at Union University
By Tim Ellsworth

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Product Description

When a powerful EF-4 tornado with winds in excess of 200 miles per hour slammed the Union University campus on February 5, 2008, destroying eighteen dormitory buildings and causing $40 million in damage, the immediate assumption was that dozens if not hundreds of lives would have been lost. Miraculously, nobody died, and the next morning major media outlets flocked to Jackson, Tennessee, where Union students and faculty credited God for their survival and got to share their faith with millions worldwide.

God in the Whirlwind

recounts the entire experience through twenty eye-of-the-storm accounts from those who saw the walls and ceilings crashing down upon them and felt their ears pop as the pressure dropped, from anxious parents who waited for their child’s call, and from Union leaders who marvel at the university’s unbroken spirit in the face of such devastation. This inspiring book also includes eighty photographs that visualize God’s mighty hand upon nature and his gentle hand of grace.


Product Details

  • Amazon Sales Rank: #754534 in Books
  • Published on: 2008-06-01
  • Original language: English
  • Number of items: 1
  • Binding: Paperback
  • 192 pages

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Tim Ellsworth is the director of news and media relations for Union University and an editor with Baptist Press where he writes a faith and values-based sports column. He lives with his family in Jackson, Tennessee.


Customer Reviews

Highly Recommended!5
Just over five months ago an EF-4 tornado with winds over 200 miles per hour slammed into the campus of Union University in Jackson, TN. Remarkably, no one was killed, although the campus sustained $40 million in damage. In the days following the catastrophic events of February 5, numerous stories of God's providence emerged from the ruins. My friend, Tim Ellsworth (director of news and media relations at Union University and sports editor for Baptist Press), has taken in hand to provide the first hand accounts of God's providence from select individuals who experienced these events. The book, published by B & H Publishing, is titled God in the Whirlwind: Stories of Grace from the Tornado at Union University. Buy the book, read the book, and be amazed at God's providential care of the students of Union University. Tim Ellsworth quotes from John Flavel's The Mystery of Providence in his introduction to God in the Whirlwind:

"If Christians in reading the Scriptures would judiciously collect and record the providences they shall meet with there, and (if destitute of other helps) but add those that have fallen out in their own time and experience, O what a precious treasure would these make! What an antidote would it be to their souls against the spreading atheism of these days, and satisfy them beyond what many other arguments can do, that 'The Lord he is the God; the Lord he is the God' (1 Kings 18:39)."

The stories recounted in God in the Whirlwind are certainly worth telling. I am thankful to God for his faithfulness during this time of crisis and to Tim Ellsworth who has preserved precious accounts from "our own time and experience". May this book be used by the same Providence that protected during the storm as "an antidote . . . against the spreading atheism of these days" until every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

God in the Whirlwind4
This book is a compilation of true stories about a night many people will never forget. On February 5, 2008 a F-4 tornado struck the campus of Union University in Jackson, TN. Though there were physical and emotional injuries and millions of dollars in damage, miraculously no one lost their life.

In this book Tim recounts the events that happened that night with personal stories of survival from individual students and faculty. When you read this book you can't help but be overcome with emotion as you feel like you yourself are practically living through that nightmare of a night. In fact I had to put it down several times because I felt like I couldn't "cope" with any more of the terror these students faced.

There are at least two reasons I am glad this book was written. First, we often hear about these type of disasters happening but unless you hear from the survivors you can't really grasp the magnitude of what they experienced. My heart breaks and my prayers are more sympathetic after having read their stories. Second, the best reason this story needs to be told is because of how the providential hand of God was clearly at work on that February night. Each student who was interviewed for this book was quick to give credit back to God for His deliverance that night. Many even shared how they were able to use this as a platform to tell the world about how their God had saved them as they were being interviewed on national television news programs.

The students, faculty, and family of Union University did not desire this experience and I'm sure would prefer it had never happened. But it did and nothing can change that. I am grateful that they were willing to tell their story of how an awesome, powerful God carried them through the most difficult night of their life. I am thankful that Tim Ellsworth would take the time to make this story available for all to read. Finally I am continually amazed at how God chooses to remind us that He is in control and true salvation can only be found in Him.

Out of the Rubble5
God in the Whirlwind: Stories of Grace from the Tornado at Union University
Paul Harvey might describe this book as "The REST of the Story" surrounding the miraculous protection of students caught in the February 5, 2008 tornado that destroyed 70% of the school's student housing and significantly damaged other buildings. The author has compiled students' first-hand accounts of the storm. He weaves in tales of parent responses when they hear that the storm is pounding their children's dormitories. And he reveals some of the innermost thoughts of Union's president David Dockery, who knew there was no margin for errors in the monumental decisions he needed to make in order to ensure the immediate welfare of the students and the quickest possible restart of classes and activities. This is a powerful testimony of faith, hope, thanksgiving and determination. It is uplifting and inspirational, meant to be shared.