Last night my family headed to the Marshall County
Fair. As many of you are, we were eager
for some rain and commented that every time we go to the fair there is a
storm. We were sure this would guarantee
some much needed rain!
Sure enough, a low rumble started and before we knew it a
storm, and I mean a STORM was blowing through the fair grounds. I had taken the kids into one of the exhibit
barns where my husband was working to wait it out. It sure seemed pretty intense and I found my
daughter in near tears sitting on my lap.
I wrapped my arms around her and just assured her I was here and that we
were in the safest spot we could be. The
storm passed and she said with great confidence she had received 2 answers to
prayer: one was that it rained and the
other was that she was safe in the storm.
In the middle of the night I awoke to yet another low rumble
that quickly grew in intensity. In a
little while, she was standing by our bed scared again. We did some rearranging and I found her next
to me in bed. She was quickly asleep
again as I listened to the storm pass.
This morning we awoke to yet more rumbles and a downpour of
rain. I grabbed my coffee and bible and
headed to the back porch to soak it all in.
As I sat there enjoying the rain and the cool breeze from the comfort of
my sheltered porch I was reminded of the many verses where God is described as
our shelter from the storm. I was so
thankful that I could enjoy the storm from my place on that porch. I was reminded of my daughter from the night
before. She sought shelter from the
storm on my lap and was able to recognize that God had kept her safe.
You know, as a parent, our tendency is to protect our kids
from storms. Not just physical storms
with thunder and lightning, but storms of life.
God promises that we will have trouble in this world, so why do we as
parents feel the need to shelter our kids from those storms? Yes, we long to protect them, and rightly
so. But what if we just held them
through the storm? What if we held them close and let them know that God is
their Shelter. God is the one that
covers them as they walk through the storm.
Why do we hide our own life storms from them? Why not let our kids see us seeking shelter
in His wings?
Storms can be scary and hard to walk through. Storms leave us feeling ripped apart sometimes. Storms often leave a trail in our lives. Maybe that is why we long to protect our kids
from their own storms: suffering
consequences to poor choices, dealing with failure, disappointment, even
tragedies of divorce, death, and sin. But the truth is that if we hadn’t walked
through those storms we wouldn’t be who we are today. God has a purpose and plan in all of those –
even if just to make us more humble and willing to seek shelter. Or maybe that is just my own personal
experience.
In today’s world, there are many places for our
kids (and us) to run to in a storm.
Places other than the shelter of God.
So as I hold my daughter through these physical storms, I long for her
to see my peace in knowing God is in control.
And I long for her to begin to grasp two things; that God is our shelter
as storms brew around us, and that I, as her mother, will always hold her hand
through those storms. We can’t shelter
our child through storms of life, but God promises He will.
Comments