Foundations: Weathering the Storms
When I drive through the countryside and see an old barn in a field, I often wonder what stories it could tell if its walls could talk. I imagine it could certainly spin yarns of yesteryear and the storms it has weathered. Like it, we too have our stories to tell—stories of the storms we’ve weathered and the truth that kept us steady when life’s storms pounded hard upon us.
When the storms of life descend, questions swirl. Why did God allow this? Why doesn’t He intervene? Does He know or care? We’re rattled to our core, and perhaps questioning the truth we’ve always believed. Will the faith foundation remain strong during this storm?
When the storms descend, one of the most important truths to remember is Who God Is.
This truth may seem far-fetched and lofty, having little to do with life on the ground, especially when we’re drowning in difficulty. This truth, which feels a million miles removed from our present struggles, draws a direct line between where we are to the divine power that sustains us. It connects us to the truth that we have direct access to God and all His resources through prayer.
When I found myself over my head in caregiving for my preemie twins, if I knew nothing else, I knew I was in desperate need of divine help and found God ever attentive to my cries. Often, His answers were not those I sought, but His tender presence taught me that He was trustworthy, and I was never abandoned or alone.
The truth of Who God is, is powerful because the One we speak with in prayer is the same God Who dwelt in Pillar and Cloud over the Israelite’s tabernacle in the wilderness, with Moses on Sinai and in his Tent of Meeting. This truth astounded me as I struggled through my long days of isolated caregiving for my boys. Exhaustion and heartache weighed heavily upon me, but when I cried for help from my kitchen, the God of Sinai welcomed my prayers and listened. God stooped down to listen to my desperate heart cries from where I sat on the kitchen floor. Again and again, He assured me that my mundane chores and the heavy responsibilities of caregiving were noted in heaven.
The crushing weight upon me shifted as I remembered that the Maker of heaven and earth was closer than my next breath. As my daily struggles washed over me, I often felt unseen and lost beneath the weight of my circumstances. However, the truth of Scripture declared that I was never alone—the Lord of Angel Armies was always by my side.
As my circumstances began hurtling headlong toward the unthinkable, I often felt powerless—like a captive on a runaway train. However, as I spoke with God in the quietness of my soul and the stillness late at night, He assured me through His word, He was in complete control and was working out His wise and sovereign plans even as what I dreaded the most descended upon me.
Because I knew God as my Companion in this storm, I leaned hard upon our trusting relationship. Frankly, His ways made little sense to me, yet I followed His lead and trusted His heart, though the path He chose was a long, difficult haul.
Through it all, He taught me Who He is, that His word is true, and that trusting Him is the only route to a deep relationship with Him. I could not have learned this on an easy road. The depth of my trust led to an intimate friendship between me and the Ancient of Days. That relationship is what empowered me to endure the longest and hardest storm of my life, and left me with a powerful story.
Each time I see an old barn with its weathered walls, I’m reminded that it holds stories that will remain untold. However, I have been entrusted with a story to share, a hard yet beautiful story of enduring faith through long seasons of hardship, pain, and loss. The barn may stand silent holding its stories, but I will tell of His faithfulness with pen and ink. I will lift my hands in praise, raise my voice in song, and declare how God drew near, and became my Friend on a journey that crushed me, yet taught me again and again that:
“My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth . . . “Psalm 120:2