Facing The Storms

Lately, We have been facing many storms in our lives. These are storms like we have never experienced before. When these storms come, blinding fear grips us and we spiral down to a place where we feel paralyzed. As fear takes over, the waves of uncertainty pull us under and we cannot breathe. It feels as though we are literally drowning in a cold, dark sea of the unknown.

It’s during these times, that if we focus on God and not on the storms that are raging all around us, we will find the inner strength and peace that we need to get through the storm.

I know from my own experiences, that keeping my focus on God and not on the waves that are about to engulf me, can sometimes be very difficult to do. It’s hard especially when we are facing serious financial hardships, homelessness, hunger, the sudden serious illness of someone we love or when we are faced with waves of sorrow and loneliness over the loss of loved ones. But, through my experiences,I have learned that no matter how hard it may be, if I don’t focus on God, the waves will crash down on me and crush me beneath them.

God never promised that life would be easy. He never said that there wouldn’t be hardships and sorrow in our lives. But He DID promise that He would be with us through the good times as well as the not so good times. He promised that He would shelter us during the storms.

If we trust and believe that God is a man of His word, then we know that the storms we face will not last forever. God is at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of all that we face in this life. If we but ask, He will calm the stormy seas, take command of our fear, He will comfort and soothe our broken hearts and He will provide for our every need.

Everyone who know me, knows I love birds. I can sit for hours just watching their cute little antics and listening to their glorious songs. I know that God gives every bird it’s food, but He doesn’t throw it into the nest. The food is all there, it’s plentiful but the birds must go out and find it. He covers them with colorful feathers that not only adorn them with beauty but also keeps them warm in the winter and dry during the spring and summer rains.

God loves and cares for all of His creation, even the smallest of His creation. If God loves and cares for even the smallest of His creation, how much more will He care for you.

The storms that we are all facing, in one way or another, will pass , like the tides that ebb and flow. Our purpose in life is to learn how to love and be loved. The situations in our lives and the storms that we face do not have to define who we are.

Change is inevitable, life as we have known it, has changed. It will never be like it was before.

The question is, have we learned from the past? If so, then we are not destined to repeat it. We have the choice. It’s not too late. We are not victims of fates that lie ahead.

We decide and we create. It’s up to us. We can stop the storms.

Do we put God back into the center of our lives, do we love others, the way we want to be loved? Do we treat the Earth with respect, taking only what we need to survive and leaving the rest? Do we respect ALL of life? Do we cherishing all of God’s creation by seeing the gifts hidden within? Do we really have to face another storm in order for mankind to change?

God’s love is constant and so is change. It’s time to lay the past to rest, learn from our mistakes, come together celebrating our commonalities and learning from each other, our differences.

We have a choice, one loving choice can change the entire world.