Once a week, I take a turn driving a carpool of girls, including my two daughters, to volleyball practice in another city. It’s a five-hour commitment since the commute is 1 ½ hours each way and the practice lasts for 2 hours. Crazy, I know.
It seems normal now, but this summer when my 16 year old was being recruited by the team, the commitment overwhelmed me. Now, I see it as a little diversion mid-week, and an opportunity to spend sweet time with my daughters.
Last night, though, held some surprise. We all returned home from school for a quick bite to eat, and change from jeans to volleyball attire and we were off. Little did we know, there was a storm on the way.
It misted and rained lightly as we drove. Nothing significant. When we arrived at practice, the air was calm and muggy; uneventful.
Last night was scrimmage night, so I got to watch them play what is typically a “closed” practice. I was distracted and thrilled as I enjoyed the talents of the players on the court. I never heard my phone ring or buzz a text.
As the girls closed practice with stretches and laughter, I looked at my phone. Missed calls and texts filled my screen. I began to read the texts and realized, not only had a storm blown through our home city, but a tornado had been spotted near our neighborhood and streets remained flooded from the heavy downpour.
I told the girls the news as we exited the gym and they began to text their friends to learn for themselves. The weather outside, as we walked to the car, remained calm and serene. Wetness surrounded, but no sign of a storm.
On the drive home, I concerned myself with possible damage we might see along the way and considered the option that the storm might not be over, or was headed our way. I asked that God would protect us with His mighty angels and bring us home to safety.
Home. Wet streets and misting rain were all that we encountered here as well. We had escaped the storm. We left and returned at just the right time. We missed the danger.
I logged onto my Facebook account and read all the accounts of hiding in hallways and closets. Fear had gripped many of my friends, but we had escaped these emotions completely. Or had we?
Webster defines a storm as “a disturbance of the normal condition”, “a heavy fall of rain, snow or hail, or a violent outbreak of thunder and lightening accompanied by strong winds.” Typically, the dictionary gives alternate descriptions, such as “a direct assault on a stronghold,” “to overwhelm, move or rush angrily”.
The origin of the word STORM is Germanic meaning, “to stir”.
All of this violent activity happened without our knowledge. It could have affected our emotions, as it did my friends on Facebook. But, somehow, even though it still was a reality, we were spared from it. Why?
I should also add to the recollection of my day, the fact that early that morning, I had discovered a secret that someone had kept from me. Conflict in a relationship had “stirred” a storm in me. I had suppressed the emotion most of the day in order to go about my routine and fulfill my obligations at work and home. But, the long drive to practice gave me time to contemplate the storm that was brewing.
Not one of physical winds, thunder and rain, but one of emotions cast by secret. I may have escaped one storm, but my mind raced in the winds of another.
In Matthew 8:24, we read, “And suddenly, behold, there arose a violent storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered up by waves; but He (Jesus) was sleeping.”
This scripture has always caused me to wonder. Why would He be sleeping in a boat in the first place? And, how in a storm of this proportion, when “the boat was being covered up by waves” could anyone sleep through it?
The passage goes on to say that the disciples had to wake him. Wow! Now that’s a sound sleeper! Or……. maybe someone who was really worn out.
We, often worn out by life’s hectic pace, fall asleep and miss the storm. We allow secrets to build and avoid the conflict that stirs in our lives. We awake to panic and fear when we realize the reality around us.
But, God says in His word, that we can be comforted, even in these storms. In Psalm 57:1, David cries out to God, “Be merciful and gracious to me, for my soul takes refuge and finds shelter and confidence in You; yes, in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge and be confident until calamities and destructive storms are passed.”
Jesus knew the power of the storm. But He also was the present at creation. He had made the very droplets of water that formed the waves rising with the wind from His breath. If he could create and allow a storm, surely, He could calm it.
Where do we turn when storms stir our soul? Physical, emotional or spiritual journeys in life can blow us off course. Rather than fighting the winds and allowing our mind to battle the storm, we need to rest in the shadow of His wings; take refuge in His calm.
Psalm 107:29 gives me pause. “He hushes the storm to a calm and gentle whisper, so that the waves of the sea are still. Amazing how the Psalmist, David, could have written these peaceful words so long before Jesus stepped foot in the boat.
Only the God of heaven could inspire such peace. I am resting in His promises. I am waiting. I take shelter and comfort in knowing that He is in the boat with me, and is more powerful than the storm.
