Recently, we encountered a severe thunderstorm on a quick trip to visit my grandparents in North Carolina. We left our minivan aka White Rocket at home and decided on my husband’s sedan since the drive time wasn’t that long. Can I just interject my two cents? Of course I can, it’s my blog! Why haven’t car companies created a diversion of sorts to separate the parents and the kids, kind of like the area in a limo that separates the driver from those riding in the limo. Just something to think about. I’d certainly love to drive a few hours listening to podcasts uninterrupted, wouldn’t you?
In route to North Carolina, we experienced the worst driving weather I have seen in a long time. I grew up in south Florida so it was nothing to have very a bad thunderstorm rear its ugly head on any given day. This, however, was tropical-storm-like weather in North Georgia!
In an attempt to solicit prayers, I posted the below video to Facebook. <mistake number one> You had those who sent prayers, those who heightened your current anxieties as you tried to be an extra set of eyes in the passenger seat, and then those who were like GET OFF AT A NEARBY EXIT.
My husband showed no sign of fear or worry as 18 wheelers sped past him and within seconds were no longer visible. There was blinding rain with wind that was sending us outside of the yellow lines. I tried to keep my anxiety and fear to a minimum while placing my hand on my chest in the hopes to calm my beating heart. We drove through 80 miles of mess and we came out on the other side of it unscathed and with a squeaky clean car to boot. Not only had my heart returned to normal beating patterns, but we saw the most beautiful double rainbow. I’ve never seen one so bright in all my life. As I gazed at it, while snapping a few pics, the Lord just flooded me with so much truth.
You see, had we listened to the voices of Facebook and got off at a nearby exit, we would have missed the promise. We would have missed the rainbow because night would have fallen. There will always be competing voices that battle within us to make a U-turn, get off at the nearest exit, or even seek another route to avoid the storm all together. While I’m not advising driving through blinding rain and wind gusts that send your car swerving into other lanes, I’m wanting you to look at this situation through spiritual eyes, not natural ones. Storms of life will always come upon us, some more than others, but in order to grab hold of the promise we will first have to weather the storm. God allows us to make our choice. What will you choose?
Noah faced a storm, but His obedience to respond, prepare, and execute enabled him to survive the storm that would wipe out humanity. Had he chosen differently, he would have missed out on his promise; in his case, he and his family members would have died with the rest of the world. We aren’t called to walk through storms in our own strength, but to rest in the One whose power is made perfect in our weakness—in the One who speaks to storms and they listen ( 2 Cor. 12:9, Matthew 8:26). Through every test and storm of life, there’s an opportunity for growth and advancement. How you respond to your storm will determine what you receive on the other side of it.
I can assure you the thought of driving through that again elevates my blood pressure, but we’d do it again because of the promise we saw on the other side. In going into the next storm, we look back on His faithfulness, trusting and believing that He’ll do it again because He is faithful!