As night fell in our town Sunday night, it seemed as if hurricane Irene had finally moved on.
However, we were warned that it was not over yet because the back end of the storm would bring high winds.
The winds started after midnight.
I couldn’t sleep. The local news was on, broadcasting scary images of vehicles trapped in rising water, roads being washed away, homes submerged, red and blue police lights flashing as roads were blocked off to protect motorists from danger.
I moved closer to my sleeping husband, grateful that he had stayed home that night, rather than heading to Vermont earlier in the day.
The house made creaking noises as the wind grew in strength. Since our development is rather new, there are no mature trees to cushion us from the wind so it blows hard against the house. Sometimes it sounds like a freight train is going straight through the center of it.
I lay in bed and stared out the sliders beyond our deck. For some reason, there was an eerie glow above the mountains. A local TV host reported that five people and a dog had been swept away into the dark night by rising waters in an area thirty minutes north of our town and a rescue was underway. (Fortunately, there was a happy ending to that story. Thank God for our men and women who risk their lives on a daily basis to save others).
Why does everything seem so much scarier at night?
I closed my eyes and began to recite Scripture passages from Ps. 18 , Ps. 91 and Psalm 121. His Word is such a comfort anytime, but never more so than when storms are raging.
Peace settled over me like a blanket and I was able to fall asleep.
I awoke to blue skies and a shining sun. There was no evidence that Irene had been here at all.
Even the scariest of storms comes to an end.
Thankfully, so do the storms in our lives.
I remember hearing the late Barbara Johnson say that one of her favorite sayings in the Bible was “…and it came to pass.” 🙂
I just came through a season that I thought would never end. Day after day, nothing seemed to change. The storm raged on.
Some days I was strong; some days I was weak and the tears flowed. There were days of discouragement and days of victory. Sometimes I wondered if the storm was here to stay for good. It was hard to remember the carefree days of sunny skies.
During this time, I read a book by Michael Card entitled A Sacred Sorrow: Meeting God in the Lost Language of Lament.
He explained that in the Bible, the world lament means simply refusing to let go of God, no matter what.
That is how I got through the storm. I just never let go.
I clung to my lifeline, the Bible. I lived on those words that spoke life and joy and peace and comfort to my tired soul.
I never stopped talking with Jesus, even during the darkest days of tears, anger, confusion, and sadness.
I just kept getting up every time I fell down.
I refused to let go of my Savior who has promised that He will never let go of me.
And then one sweet day, the storm was over. The dark clouds evaporated to reveal blazing sunshine.
A new day had arrived.
If you are in the middle of a storm right now, continue clinging to Jesus through His Word. Refuse to let go no matter what.
The storm will end in His perfect timing and He will see you safely through.
“Christ said, ‘Let us go over to the other side’—not ‘to the middle of the lake to be drowned.'”—Daniel Crawford
E 
Power Of A Moment 