STORMS
Last week we had a snow storm. A beautiful fresh white canvas of snow was
given to us. In this storm it brought
beauty, peace, calm, stillness, and smiles.
Lots of smiles. But not all
storms bring beauty. Not all of our
personal storms are beautiful….they aren’t so peaceful…they don’t bring calm
and stillness and certainly not smiles.
But even though they don’t bring us this…could they be beneficial
to us?
This is our word for the week in Proverbs 31 OBS and I’m
taking this in a different direction.
Dictionary.com
defines beneficial as: “conferring benefit, advantageous; helpful.”
Is this storm helpful?
What I determine to be beneficial may not be what you
determine beneficial and I’m betting it’s not what God determines to be beneficial. I only see what is right in front of me- I
can’t see all that God sees. My seeing is not omniscient.
My reaction to this storm is to only be faithful to see
Him and obey Him in it. This is a very difficult thing to do. I scream emotions! I tend to jump right into anger first…then I
get sappy…then I sink into fear. I’m not
thinking of anything but how to fix it.
“Because to thank God in all is to refuse
Satan’s relentless lure to be god-like in all.” ~Ann Voskamp
This is not easy.
The grey skies of this storm can consume me and I can get messy. I can get thrown around. I can drown in my emotions and fear. I can destroy a lot. I can be harmful. I can hurt with my words because I’m
angry. But…and here’s the BIG BUT! But in Him…I live! In Him I will rise. He can use this storm to resurrect me. I have
to look to Him because His love can cast out all my fears. I have to get my daily portion of Him for my strength.
Living on the Bread of Life is my power source. It has to
be for me to stay above the waves. “Not by my strength but His.” Zechariah 4:6
Sometimes storms are beneficial
when they shape me to be more like Jesus.
I don’t like the storms…but looking for Him for my portion is the only
way to get through each day of the storm.
It will give me hope and courage to take the next step.
My pastor spoke about God being our umbrella. God is my umbrella. He covers me and everyone He has placed under
my umbrella. I need to trust “The Umbrella.”
“Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me…you’ve
never failed and you won’t start now.” Oceans – Hillsong United
Trust
The Umbrella!
Thanks for sharing, Michelle. I agree that, "Sometimes storms are beneficial when they shape me to be more like Jesus." Perspective makes a huge difference. I enjoyed your pictures :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Ruth!! :)
DeleteLove your pictures!! We got snow too in VA and I loved it! I liked where you state, "In Him I will rise." So powerful. Through any storm God will rise us up! Thank you for sharing your heart!
ReplyDeleteThank you Jennifer. :)
DeleteLoved your pictures, and the visual of the umbrella . Thanks for sharing that even though we don't like the storm God can be trusted in the storm to always be near and to never leave us. We need to remain faithful to Him.
ReplyDeleteMarilyn (OBS Group Leader)
Thank you Marilyn :)
DeleteMichelle! Thank you so much!! I really enjoyed this fresh take on remember that yes...even storms and suffering...can be beneficial. In addition to the Hillsong "Oceans" you already mentioned, there are a lot of songs God has used to reveal this message. I'll pass a few along. God bless!! ~ Miriam of http://cravingsconfidential.blogspot.com.
ReplyDeleteLaura Story - "Blessings" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CSVqHcdhXQ
Josh Wilson - "Fall Apart" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKISYTwnn0A
Jenn Johnson - "Come to Me" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sY0Vz8fvIhE
Thank you Miriam! I love all of these songs!!! Thank you for sharing them. :)
DeleteI really enjoyed reading your thoughts. It is so hard to look at the storm and see it as beneficial, but that is what we should do. This will make us rely on Jesus who we should use as our rock. Thank you so much.
ReplyDelete-Yvonne Fuchs, OBS Group 49 leader.
Thank you Yvonne!!
Delete