The Storm

Have you ever been in one of those storms… you know the kind where your not sure if your going to make it out? Mori and I stayed with my parents one summer in Rockford Illinois. And one day when we were coming home from someplace we saw this huge black front off to the west. We turned onto the road that goes by my parent’s subdivision and we realized we were headed straight for it. At first I was all manly and was like “oh this is no big deal”, but then I saw the sky wasn’t just dark, it was one of those erie shades of green, the ones that tornados like to hide in.

As we drove nearer to the cloud the wind started to pick up, but no rain. We looked to our right at some of the businesses nearby and all of their emergency lights were on because their power had gone out. We then noticed that all of the street lights were out as well. I began to get this sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. All I wanted to do is get to my parents house as quick as possible and get to the basement.

As we drove closer to this unearthly looking dark cloud we heard a huge BOOM!... then it hit us. It wasn’t like it started trickling or spitting, it was like a tidal wave of water hit us. Torrential downpour. I couldn’t even see two feet in front of our car. As I struggled to make out the brake lights in front of us we began to see cars pulling off to the side of the road. Then branches started flying off of trees and hitting cars. Some of the branches we had to drive over because they were in the middle of the road. They were not the little sticks you pick up in your yard during the spring. We were literally driving over huge logs. The wind was blowing so hard that our car started to rock. I still could not see hardly anything in front of me, and the whole time I’m thinking, “I’M DRIVING RIGHT INTO THE MIDDLE OF A TORNADO.” I just knew any minute we were going to be sucked up by the funnel and tossed to Kansas.

We finally inched our way to my parent’s road and made it to their house. We left the car in the driveway and ran into the house, grabbed our cat, apple, and ducked down into the basement. The funny thing is, when we turned on the news, it not only didn’t say anything about a tornado, but not even a peep about a severe thunderstorm. I tried to play it off like I knew what I was doing all along, but that was one of the scariest storms I’ve been through.

Sometimes life feels like that doesn’t it? Where you feel like your surrounded by a huge storm not knowing if you’ll make it through it alive… you can’t really see anything in front of you, and all you see is a whirlwind of debris flying around you.

God never promises us a life full of nothing but blue skies. He never said “there will never be any storms.” He only promises us that He will be there with us through the “stormy” times in our lives...

“Even when I walk THROUGH [not around] the dark valley of death, I will not be afraid, FOR YOU ARE CLOSE BESIDE ME.” -Psalm 23:4

Whatever your storm, know that God is with you!

Fear

We all have things we are afraid of. Some of us its the dark, for some its spiders, others its April 15th when taxes are due. I remember a time when I was small, when all of my cousins dressed up for Halloween. I vividly remember my uncle dressing up as a big scary gorilla. I was scared out of my mind. I cried and screamed, and ran away. Ah the days of simple fears. Then as I entered high school I began to fear other things... like how my hair looked, or talking to girls I liked. Our fears seem to evolve and become more complex don’t they? They begin to morph into worry. We worry about our health, worry about our jobs, worry about our relationships, worry about finances. Eventually our fears begin to control us... our actions.... our decisions... our lives.

Do you know what the most common command from God is in the bible ? “FEAR NOT... DO NOT BE AFRAID... DO NOT FEAR” It seems that God has some insight into our lives. He knows how easy it is to begin to live our lives based on fear. Fear steals our joy. It robs us of enjoying life to the fullest. Fear also keeps us from obeying God.

When Mori and I first moved to Cincinnati we knew in our hearts that God wanted us to plant a new church here. But right before we moved we realized that the funding we were counting on would not be available to us. We were faced with a choice. We had clearly heard God speak to us, and we both agreed that we were supposed to plant on the West Side of the city. But we no longer had the comfort of knowing exactly where our finances were going to come from. We had to choose whether to make our decision based on fear, and stay where it was comfortable, or obey God and trust that He would provide. We chose to base our decision on faith (Hebrews 11:1) and the rest is history.

These are a few verses from the Bible that help me as I face fear in my own life...

“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." Isaiah 43:1-3

“You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!" Isaiah 26:3

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; He leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to His name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. Your rod and Your staff protect and comfort me.” Psalm 23:1-4

“Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.” Isaiah 41:10