Have you ever flown through a storm?

It was raining when our plane landed in Charlotte. I was visibly frustrated by what I assumed would cause an imminent delay. So I did what every passenger planning on being stranded in the Charlotte airport does; I unloaded the contents of my carry-on on the first available bench and began mind mapping how I would spend the next 10-12 hours, how could it not take that long with all that rain! (I actually have no idea what people stranded in Charlotte do, I’d never flown through there before… I’m a tad dramatic).

You can imagine my shock when minutes later the flight attended announced it was time to board.

“Ha! Surely you jest!” (Only, I didn’t think that exactly… no one talks like that.) “you jest” was added later for effect, whatever…it’s my story.

Anyway.

As we boarded the plane the rain picked up. I handed my boarding pass to the attendant with a casual, “boy, it’s really coming down out there”. Pretty sure she said nothing. We walked like zombies through the terminal to what I was certain would be our impending deaths. I wanted to shake my husband and scream, “READ BETWEEN THE LINES PEOPLE, IT IS RAINING OUT THERE, AND WE ARE BOARDING A PLANE!!! WE ARE GOING TO DIE!!” (Clearly, rain is far more frightening to people who grow up in the desert, where a couple of inches is enough to close entire cities). Despite my better judgment, I loaded the plane quickly and quietly and took my seat next to the window with a clear view of angry grey clouds spewing buckets of doom.

Why am I telling you this?

Because, whether you’ve flown through a storm in an airplane or not, you’ve likely flown through a few life storms of your own, Lord knows I have. If I wanted to I could walk back into my most recent storm and still taste the fear and doubt on my heart… I don’t want to.  If you haven’t flown through a life storm better prepare yourself now. We all fly through storms before landing at our destination. And I can’t think of a single person who wouldn’t rather stay in the safety of solid ground than face the uncertainty grey skies bring. Heck, even David wished he could escape his trials and flee, “far from the tempest and the storm”, and he was a king.

If the storm that you are in has you feeling impotent and fearful, wishing you’d missed your flight, it should give you some comfort knowing you are in good company. No one likes to fly through a storm.  It’s often the storms in our lives, however, that shape us into the people we are created to be.

So, instead of running scared when the clouds come rolling in, here are three thoughts that might just help you, and me, make the most of our storms:

1. When running, waiting, and wishing wont work, try resting. Look I get it, resting is not the first thing we want to do in the middle of a storm. For that reason,  I suggest you exhaust all other options first. Go ahead: try to outrun it, try to wait it out, shoot you can even try wishing it away. OR… if that’s too exhausting skip straight to resting. There are some storms (probably most) where these tactics just can’t work, and you might come to the end of yourself exhausted and ready to quit. Don’t quit, rest.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest”

God loves you so much, beloved. He longs to lift your burden and give you rest. All you have to do is come. There is rest in knowing and believing God is sovereign even through your storm.

1. Don’t accept defeat. I’ve recently walked through a man made storm… made in part by me. Those are the worst kind aren’t they?!! It’s bad enough to be in a storm, but to be in a storm when you are even partly to blame really stinks. Get over it. There is a slippery slope between accepting responsibility for your actions and accepting defeat because of them. While it is important to recognize your part in creating storms so you seek forgiveness when necessary, if you find yourself feeling defeated because of past actions, resist those feelings and remember you are  more than a conqueror through Him who loves you (Rom 8:37). Regardless of how you got into the storm, God can see you through it!
2. Keep going. One thing I learned on my flight from Charlotte to Phoenix was this: even storms that seem to go on forever, eventually end. And when the turbulence get’s too rough, the pilot has the power to rise above it.

Yes, there were moments of sheer terror where I found myself white knuckling my seat, thankful I had outlined “Roman’s road” in my Bible so I was prepared to be the airplane evangelist should the other passengers realize we were about to meet our maker. But as the pilot stayed the course, the clouds eventually parted and I was greeted with a sea of pillowy white blanketed by a clear blue sky. Then suddenly, it all made sense.

No one like’s to fly through a storm.

I don’t know what kind of storm you are in; but I do know, that if your hope is in Jesus, even the darkest of nights are temporary. Keep going, morning is coming (Psalm 30:5).

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world! John 16:33

If you are going through a storm now, know that I am praying for you. God will never give you more than you can handle and is right there with you. Please feel free to leave prayer requests or encouragement for others in the comments below.

To Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly more than all we ask or think be all glory, honor, and praise.

Xoxo,

S