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A severe thunderstorm in our area last autumn caused me great concern. It was the periphery of a tropical storm on the eastern seaboard, and there were warnings of extremely high winds. Around 1:30 a.m., I was still awake, even anxious about our windows withstanding the powerful gusts that battered our home. My husband is a night owl, and he was blissfully unconcerned about the turmoil outside. Wearing earphones, he was engrossed in a good movie.
I chided myself for having little faith, but the fear was strong. So I sat on the end of our bed and prayed, first apologizing to God for being weak and asking Him to renew my faith. Right away, I heard the words, "Fear not", and was comforted. Just as I gave my thanks, I heard two loud cracks outside, followed by a very loud thump. But I was not afraid. I went to the room where my husband still sat, earphones now removed since he had heard the thump. We looked outside and all we could see was tree. An outdoor check determined that the house was sound, and amazingly, within minutes, the winds abated.
It was a 40-foot blue spruce that had broken at a fork and had fallen down alongside our house, neatly tucked between our garage and garden shed, even missing our barbecue. A rose-bearing trellis was broken, but the rose survived. The tree-removal man was amazed that there was no damage, saying that we were very lucky. But of course, I knew that luck had no part in it. God had shown His amazing power with a huge exclamation point, right after reminding me what it means to have faith. Then He followed it up with a lull in the storm — His wonderful peace.
In much the same way as earthly parents do, God our Father shows His children the way, gives us instructions, shows us where to find answers, tells us that He will be there when needed, and then sets us free to live our lives and make our own decisions. But only God the Father can assure His children that He will fix the problems we face. He will, He can, and He does. He asks only that we trust Him. When we finally get it, He rewards us. God solved my problem of anxiety over lack of faith by telling me not to fear. His reward was illustrating — in real time, up front and personal — how even a major, potentially dangerous event could still be controlled by Him so as not to cause me harm.
Philippians 4:4,6-7 – Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice! Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (NIV)
Prayer: Dear Father Lord, thank You for understanding our weaknesses, for forgiving them, and for tenderly and sometimes mightily showing us how to correct them. In order for us to truly understand what faith means, we ask that You continue to show us the way. Amen.
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Well done. Please write again.
Thanks Deana for sharing these thoughts.
Great example of faith in action. Thanks for sharing.
Lovely devotional Deana. Much food for thought. Thanks for sharing.
I lift you and your children right this moment and will do each any every night.
Loved your devotion Deana. It was exactly what I needed this morning. Great reminder. Be Blessed, Be Surprised! And keep writing.
Dear Deana,
I really enjoy your devotional “Understanding Faith”.
Thank you.
Thanks, Deana, for this wonderful illustration of how much God cares for us when we put our trust & faith in Him. Prayer is so powerful and so is our God. Nothing is impossible for Him. I have experienced it time and time again in my own life when I seek His help.
Dear Deana,
Thank you so much for message. I am over and fighting illness.
I particularly love the Bible verse from Philippians. I do feel peace which transcends all understanding.
Blessings.
Deana
You express yourself beautifully and this was an excellent message…especially for a rainy day. It seemed even more impactful after the recent West Coast Tsunami Alert Devotional, which was also very good.
May the Lord sweeten both our sleep with His abiding presence this evening.
Thanks Deana for that perfect example of how the Lord takes care of his own. I was reading just recently about angels and their duties concerning our care. “He shall give his angel charge over thee to keep thee in all they ways…” Ps 91 seems to have been forgotten too often in the storms of life.
Blessings.
Dear Deana,
Thank you for your report of trusting in the time of storm. I thank God with you for his presence and his answers to your trust and prayer.
Keep trusting him who went all the way to the cross for us to give us full and free salvation forever.
Write again.
Deana
How many of us who are believers still fall apart when we are terrorized with no place to go.
Philippians 4:4,6-7 — You got it and I must confess, though I have almost memorized your choice of scripture, it sometimes is hard to measure up.
God bless you on a reminder to have faith in all circumstances, and rejoice in the Lord always.
God Bless.
Dear Deana,
I loved your devotional from today.
I have been scared during storms like that. My husband is the same as your husband.
When I am scared during a storm like that, I LOVE to read the passage when Jesus is in the boat and the storm came and the disciples are terrify.
JESUS then calms the storm.
I LOVE THAT PASSAGE FROM THE BIBLE.
(Ohio, USA)
Wow, talk about an earth shaking experience. I needed the words of your application just now. Thanks for writing. Blessings.
Deanna you are practically my neighbour!!
Interesting to me that the last few devotionals have all been about storms in one way or another.
GRIPPING story, Deana and so well written. Your early fear is almost palpable! You haven’t lost your touch, girl! You show all the steps – fear, which comes to all of us, appeal to God and the answer to your prayers. Very comforting to all of us, your readers.
HI Deana.
I have just read again your devotional and in my situation having waited a very long time for a date with the surgeon it meant so much more to me. I have finally got a surgery date. And my one regret is that my faith wavered so often during that waiting time. But the Lord is faithful and knows us. He takes and can ever be relied upon.
Blessings.
Good Evening Deana:
A beautiful, beautiful devotional demonstrating to us how very attentive and caring our Lord really is. He knew tragedy was near, and protected both you and your husband from disaster. Your paragraph below explains the reason.
“In much the same way as earthly parents do, God our Father shows His children the way, gives us instructions, shows us where to find answers, tells us that He will be there when needed, and then sets us free to live our lives and make our own decisions. But only God the Father can assure His children that He will fix the problems we face. He will, He can, and He does. He asks only that we trust Him. When we finally get it, He rewards us. God solved my problem of anxiety over lack of faith by telling me not to fear. His reward was illustrating — in real time, up front and personal — how even a major, potentially dangerous event could still be controlled by Him so as not to cause me harm.” –
An amazing paragraph, yet we must never forget how our mighty our Lord is. He is the one who calmed the winds and the raging sea, healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, made the lame to walk and with His supreme sacrifice provided the marvelous gift of Salvation to we who are willing to make Him Lord of our lives. Nothing is too great for His amazing ability.
When we were children we sang the song, “God can do anything, anything, anything, anything, Our God can do anything but fail. So very true.
I am glad no one was hurt during the storm and you were blessed by having no damage to your home, again, God was faithful.
Blessings.