Any Storms, Lately?

Sunny, hot, calm. Out of no where, a storm kicked up!

Fast, furious, dark and damaging: the torrential rain pelting my window like hail. Wind gusted to 60 miles an hour, snapping trees and limbs. People ran for cover. The sheets of rain rotating, straight down, east sideways, west sideways, waves. In a matter of blinks, everything about the world I was watching changed!! A dramatic show!!

My husband came from a back room, “Whoa, is that rain?” Peering out the window, “Wow, where did that come from?” The trees, grass, bushes rustled and tussled like a hurricane. The skies ominous and foreboding: heavy with darkness and torrential downpour. Thunder, cracks, lightening. It surrounded us… a violent summer storm.

 

 

Has this ever happened to your life?

 

I’m not talking about in nature. I mean one moment your life was predictable and calm. The next moment, out of nowhere, a storm blew in; unforeseen and unpredictable.

Everything within your scope changed. Fast, furious, dark, and damaging! You ran for cover, stared in disbelief. Nothing prior prepared you for the present reality. Before your eyes, limbs fell, trees snapped off, power out, wind damaged trees and houses, cars pulled over, etc. Life halted as shock set in: what you saw was not what you knew!

Storms of life often show up just like this summer storm: swift, unpredicted, unpredictable, and damaging. You are dumped on, deluged, stunned and do not know what’s next. There is not a plan A or B. Suspended mid-step on a familiar path, it turns unfamiliar, filled with difficulty, chaos, confusion, sadness, sorrow, maybe even grief. 

Do I keep walking or turn around? Should I go left or right? The “proper move” is not discernible. The path is dark when a second ago it seemed crystal clear.

 

I’ve been there too!

Circumstances may be different, but the shock and craziness similar! There was a time in my life, where this scenario had not yet happened to me: what seemed like a storm was merely a rain shower. Unfortunately, we will all be there at some point.

 

John 16:33 (amplified)

I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer [take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted]! For I have overcome the world. [I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.]

 

Life is hard, messy, sometimes uncomfortable. It is! If you live long enough, that will become intimately clear to you. We wish it weren’t. We pray it isn’t. But this world is imperfect. As hard as we try to “fake ourselves out”, thinking earth can be our haven, oasis, “heaven”… it can’t be! It’s fatally flawed with sin, sickness and sorrow.

 

Storms mean … clean-up.

Limbs and trees need collected and discarded. Shingles need replaced. Rivers may flood. Roadways cleared. No doubt storms leave destruction in their wake.

Life-storms require clean-up too; some physical, some in the heart. The aftermath may be different. It’s. Never. Simple.

Today, I bring you courage!

You are not on your own to figure out the unclear, the broken, chaos or confusion.

Mark 4:37-39

A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it. And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, “Teacher, is it nothing to you that we’re going down?” Awake now, he told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, “Quiet! Settle down!”

The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass.

 

Jesus is IN the storm with you!

He does NOT disappear in our storms. He does not send us in alone to stumble our way through. Hoping to find the right path. He promises to be with us. (Joshua 1:5)

He will take charge, when you ask Him!

It was when the disciples asked Jesus, that He took control, even though He was there all along.

The Wind Runs Out of Breath!

Wow, how this encourages me! The storm will end, it “runs out of breath”! It won’t last forever! A storm begins and ends! It’s not infinite, it is finite. You are infinite! We will, with God’s help, survive the storm! His presence can and will minister to our hearts like nothing else in a storm. Storms are nothing to Him! They toss us about, throw us off balance, produce uncertainty and fear, but they have no breath when He speaks!

…. The sea, once again, becomes smooth as glass!

Life WILL once again regain stability and have some smooth sailing. This storm is not the end of you, it’s part of your journey, but not ALL your journey! There is life beyond. It is Not easy. No man knows the length or depth of your storm.

But, there is hope!

 

God is with you!

Let Him handle the wind!

Trust Him to get through!

 

 Note: Many need to confide in someone on earth, too: a husband, wife, family member, counselor, trusted friend…. they’ve likely been in a storm too! You are not alone!

 

Winds Run Out of Breath,

Thank you, Lord!

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