A Perfect Storm

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. Mark 4: 35-39

 We are currently in the midst of the greatest storm our eyes have ever seen:  Hurricane Sandy.  Reports say that the East coast of the United States has been devastated with damage from fallen trees, gusts of winds at 90 miles per hour, power outages and over flooding.  Folks have had to evacuate their homes and seek refuge elsewhere.  As I watch the news coverage of the storm on my television and witness reactions through social media, I’m struck by the captivating hold Hurricane Sandy has on we, her prey; her presence and power has virtually caused everyone to stand at attention.  I’m noticing the messages constructed in the news media and in social media as well; messages about pulling together as a nation and making sure that our neighbors around us have survival supplies such as water, blankets, flashlight, etc...  It’s a message that covertly illustrates God’s greatest commandment, “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Luke 10:27 

But getting back to Hurricane Sandy’s commanding force reminds me of another passage in scripture:

³⁵ That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” ³⁶ Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. ³⁷ A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. ³⁸ Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

³⁹ He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 
Mark 4: 35-39

We all have storms in our lives; times when something of a catastrophic nature has taken center stage and wreaked havoc in our lives.  A moment when our light has gone out and we are flooded with grief and sorrow; we are tumbling in the wind and desperate for refuge from our storm.  A couple of years ago, I was in a storm of that magnitude.  Malachi had received and I.V. infusion of a medicine to strengthen his bone density.  He had never had an infusion of any kind before, nor had he ever had this particular medicine.  After the infusion was administered, we were discharged home for recovery.  Hours later, Malachi had an adverse reaction to the medicine - he crashed, big time!  He was lethargic and tachycardic (elevated heart rate).  His heart rate had gone as high as 230!  My heart rate sky rocketed too!  I had never seen Malachi so out of it before. Although his ability to move his body is severely limited, I saw no muscle movement from him whatsoever and that frightened me.  Additionally, with his heart rate so high, we weren’t able to feed him, so he had to have I.V. fluids. It was a gloomy storm and I was scared.  The doctor that administered the infusion was of no help to me whatsoever.  He couldn’t understand why Malachi was having the reaction to the medicine. According to his literature, his reaction was “abnormal” and so he wasn’t sure how to treat.  To make matters worse, the doctor shared with me that he had never administered the medicine to a child before! Malachi’s primary doctor admitted Malachi to the ICU (intensive care unit) for “observation.”  In essence, we had to wait out that storm.  I will tell you that that was one of the longest and most painful periods of my life.  It was a major struggle for me NOT to be in my head playing out “what if” scenarios. I cried and prayed my way through that storm.

There is no storm in our life that can match the omnipotent power of God! When we love the Lord our God with all of our heart, we know that He is shelter in the storm; He is our safe place to run to.    Instead of being fixated on Hurricane Sandy and the magnitude of her destruction, I choose to be fixated on God and what He will do in this moment in my life.  Yes, I am choosing to make this current storm personal in the same way that the storm with the infusion was personal.  God did some miraculous things in my life during that time and I am expecting Him to do awesome things during this current storm!  For one, I couldn’t look to the doctors for answers – they didn’t have them!  I learned to look to God in the storm.   Second, my husband, Maurice, encouraged me to play back all of the moments when Malachi overcame sickness and beat the odds; he encouraged me to stand in faith instead of fear. You see, I was afraid of what I was seeing and what I was imagining so much so that I was literally making myself sick.   Fear will make you sick because fear is a stance of weakness; we cower when we are afraid.  Faith will make you strong because faith is a stance of strength; we stand tall and confident when we stand in faith.  And finally, I am looking forward to what God will speak in this storm.  The scripture said that He told the waves to “Quiet!  Be still!”  And then He spoke directly to His disciples. It was personal.  That let me know that when we bring our storms to God, He takes it personally.  Yes, we are currently witnessing a great storm in Hurricane Sandy, but we serve the GREATEST GOD!!!

QUESTION OF THE DAY:  What are you anticipating God to do in your life during this storm?