A Lesson From a Spring Storm

Nothing like taking a nap on a rainy Saturday afternoon.....so nice! Until the phone rings with your sister asking if you are taking cover because a tornado has touched down in a neighboring city! That's what happened this past Saturday, about 4:00 pm. Here's the thing....I do not like storms, especially the lightning, high-wind, hail-producing, tornado-at-any-moment kind. However, since becoming a mother, I have actually put this fear aside so that my children do not develop this same fear! (I'm sure my mom is laughing at this statement, but it is true!) I think I am doing well with this....if you knew how I used to be "in my younger years," you would agree. So, after receiving this phone call from my well-intentioned sister, I got up and turned on the TV. Of course, at this time, the only thing on the news was the coverage of the Cowboys training camp facility blowing down. Horrible to see that!! But, they did interrupt to tell us that there was circulation spotted near our town, actually headed to the general direction of where we live! Then, of course, that's when our satellite went out, so we had that little warning! Kaila picked up on the fact that I was gathering pillows to protect us in the hallway, and that must mean something is happening. She got nervous very quickly and began asking questions. Nathan began saying, "A twister is coming! A twister is coming!" Boys!!! And Olivia, well, she was oblivious to the whole situation. Daron became the scouter, and where did that leave me? The calm in the storm...yeah, right!! I was trying to be though. I gathered my little ones to the hallway, and we plopped down on our pillows. It was very quiet in the hallway for a short time. It wasn't long before Olivia began playing on the pillows, and Nathan started asking questions about "twisters." Poor Kaila....she had a look of panic on her face as she asked, "Momma, is a tornado coming to our house?" All I could say was, "Well, I'm not sure, but we will be ok. How about we listen to some music?" Thank goodness for the iphone!! So, I turned on the ipod function of my phone, and I pulled up our favorite music by Chris Tomlin, of course. Right there in the hallway, we listened to songs of praise to God our Father, who does protect us in all kinds of storms. Immediately, the mood in our tiny hallway changed. My kids and I were singing along; Nathan and Olivia were bobbing their heads to the beat like they always do. Kaila's look of panic began to fade and her voice quivered less and less as the song kept playing. A feeling of peace came over me as well, and I could feel the presence of Holy Spirit in the hallway with us. It was beautiful, despite what was going on, and the weather outside was not good at all! There was circulation in that storm very near us.....probably closer than we knew! But, in our hallway, my children and I were able to sing praises to the Lord and forget about the storms outside! My children may be young, but they know that God loves them and believe He protects them. You could see it on their faces and hear it in their voices. It was a moment with my children I will never forget, as we were able to put aside our fears and sing to our God whom we love. Thinking back on this now, I only wish I could stop and do this every time a "storm" comes up. The peace that comes when I focus on God being in control of all circumstances, always, is indescribable, but yet, many times, I still try to figure things out on my own in these "storms," getting flustered along the way, making a mess of things, until all I can do is bring the flustered mess to Him. Thankfully, each and every time, He takes the mess and makes it new, better than I can imagine. His mercies are new each and every time. My daily prayer is that in the midst of whatever "storms" may arise, I will turn to my Father first, in faith and total dependence and trust that He will carry me through. Then, as the Casting Crowns song says, "I praise You in this storm....."