Isn't it amazing to know that no matter what we face in life that God is ever present? When life is easy and no obstacles are in your way, it's easy to just casually say, "yep God's good." It's almost as if it's a pleasantry these days. Isn't it? We say it as easily as we say "hello" or "nice weather today". But once you've been through a storm you know that God is more than just good. I'm talking about the kind of storm that rages in your heart and threatens to destroy everything you hold dear. The kind of storm so dark you don't know if you'll ever see the light of day again. It's those dark, angry clouds that roll in over your heart when you lose a child, when a marriage fails, when pain and illness are lingering day after day. I've not only been in the middle of several of these storms myself but I've weathered through several of them with the people around me. I've clung on to life when it wasn't just the stinging pelts of sorrow hitting my face but the powerful current of doubt, anger and sorrow trying to pull me under.
Once you've been in a storm that has rocked your world to the very inner core, you know that there is only one way out. There's only one sure thing that remains and never ceases to be there.
And that is God.
When my daughter was rolled into surgery and her very life was on the line, I had to give her over to a stranger, also know as the surgeon. I had to place her in this (wonderful) man's hands and let go. At that very moment I wanted to scream a scream that could be heard round the world. I felt like that scream would wilt flowers and trees and cause sky high buildings to crumble. I felt like if I let that scream, from deep inside my heart escape my lips, that it would never end.
Do you know and have you felt that kind of pain and anguish? Where you feel like you're underwater waiting to gasp for air?
The best way I could describe it would be that part in the movie Twister where they are in the eye of the storm and all they can do to survive is to take horse reigns and strap themselves to pipes that were buried deep in the ground. Do you remember that part? The wind was unbelievable as it tore down the building that was sheltering them. Their bodies were tossed up into the air like rag dolls as the storm raged. But funny, if you should watch that movie again and see that very part, their faces are calm. There's no screaming or wailing but just a sense of peace. I know it's just a movie but it's so true to the storms that rage in our lives. When I kissed my little girl on the forehead, instead of letting that scream escape my mouth, I spoke life over her. I called for the King of Heaven to fill up that operating room and to have His angels encamp all around her. Honestly I could not have walked out of that room and left her lying on an operating room table and taken my sanity with me any other way. Was there an unbelievable amount of fear? YES! But there in that hospital waiting room a peace washed over us like a rushing mighty wind. Until that moment in time I had no idea that the peace of God could shake a place silent. My heart, although aching for my little girl, became calm. I was the one who was being secured down in the middle of the storm. Jesus was what I tied my heart to because He is what I am rooted in. This is how I kept that horrible storm from emotionally destroying me.
Once you've been through a storm as intense as this one (or worse) you are left with two choices. You can try to out run the storm, but we know that it's pretty hard if not impossible to outrun something that intense. Or you can tether yourself to the Almighty Healer and Protector of your heart. You can count on Him to hide you in His shelter and not let anything by any means harm you.
When storms like this hit, there can be a lot of devastation left around you. There might be pieces left to be picked up and many things that have to be rebuilt - but with Him you can rebuild and restore your life. I will not pretend or portray in my writing to you that life is full of happy easy road at all times. But I can tell you that once you've been in the eye of an incredibly intense storm you know that you are at all times in the presence of the king of Kings. You may not see Him but when it hits-- you KNOW Him, you FEEL Him and you have the opportunity to let Him sweep His power over your entire situation. These types of storms don't leave you the same, do they? They change the entire course of your life. Once you let Him help you rebuild and restore, you are a new, incredible person that is not easily shaken by storms. Your hope has become eternal and your life has new focus and new direction.
If you are currently in the eye of a storm in your life, whether it be a death or depression, illness or the ending of a relationship -- know that He is there to protect your heart and give you peace that passes all understanding. He will guard your mind from the stress and hurt of the situation that might other wise leave you emotionally broken. Rest in Him and let Him take over battling the storm for you. You in yourself cannot fight it but He can cause the winds to calm and the storm to stop raging. Take a deep breath and let his peace enter your heart.
I have been through many storms and because of what He's brought me through, I have never been more confident in my King. And what He has done for me, He wants and aches to do for you.
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