Learning How to Weather the Storm

As new residents to  the Sunshine State, we are learning many new things. Hurricane season begins in two weeks so this weekend our destination was the Tampa Bay Hurricane Expo. We came away with a stack of information to read and digest.

It’s certainly a different world than we have been used to.  We heard many new concepts including evacuation routes, flood zones, storm surges, wind speeds and isobars .  We’d already known quite a bit since we’ve visited Florida regularly for the past 35 years.  And  during hurricane season, we watched with great interest from up north, since my grandfather lived here. We are  now getting a fresh perspective, as residents who could be directly effected by a major storm.

As I listened to discussion about how to prepare and what to expect I was amazed at how well organized the area is to face an incoming storm. They have a timeline of  steps to take 5 days out, 3 days out, and the day of the storm. The key to being safe is being prepared.  The storm has no mercy, but you can take steps to be ready when the storm makes landfall.

I couldn’t help but think of what I had just been learning in my women’s bible study this semester. The topic was the armor of God, detailed in Ephesians 6.  God gave us all we need to stand against the enemy of our souls who also has no mercy.  We just need to USE what we know.

The other thing I couldn’t help but think of as I saw the maps and the satellite pictures of huge storms covering most of the Gulf of Mexico is that even these powerful storms are no match for our God.  Psalm 107:28-29 says, “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,  and He brought them out of their distresses.  He caused the storm to be still, so that the waves of the sea were hushed.” We also know that Jesus calmed the storm when He was in the boat with His disciples (Mark 4). It was no trouble for Him at all.

We don’t know why God doesn’t always calm the storm in our lives, but we know He is able. If he doesn’t choose to do so, we also know He has given us what we need to stand strong against the storm and believe that He will keep us from being destroyed.

Is a storm on your horizon? What are you doing to prepare for landfall? Maybe you are in the middle of a hurricane right now. Be encouraged, God is more powerful than the storm and He will be right there with you until the storm passes.

Do you know what the amazing thing is about a hurricane? After it passes, the sky clears and the sun shines again.