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Preparing for the Storm
It’s been pretty crazy around here in Houston. People are panicking. There’s fear in the air. The hurricane, Rita, is heading our direction and people are acting like it’s the end of the world. You should see the lines at the stores with people stocking up on basic necessities. It kind of reminds me of Y2K. Remember that? People were tripping, but it came and gone. We’re still here, though, right?
Now, I believe in precaution, but I’ve never seen people filled with so much fear. At work, everyone kept asking me, “What are you going to do?” Well, if worse comes to worse, I’ll probably head back home to Raton or something, but I can honestly say that I’m not really that worried. If the storm hits, it hits. I’m praying I don’t have to swim my way to safety, though, because I am not a good swimmer. I was kidding with my brother that I was going to go to Wal-Mart and buy me some of those rubber ducky floating devices for my arms.
I’ve been making plans on what to do in case Rita decides to hit us hard. I’ve been thinking of all the things I’d pack up. I don’t really have anything of great value, but things like my guitar and my computer are of importance. I have everything on my computer, all my songs, all my music, all my writings. So losing that would be awful. But everything else, it’s just all material things. All that can be replaced. But even if I did lose everything, I know that I still have Jesus, and that’s all that really matters.
I believe that as Christians, we need to prepare for storms in our lives, but not fear the storms. We all go through them at some point in our life. Whenever I start thinking about storms, I go back to the story in the Bible where Jesus was asleep in the boat and the disciples were panicking because a great storm came upon them (Mark 4:35-41). They woke Jesus up, afraid, thinking that they were going to die.
I think Jesus was teaching the disciples something. Jesus had the power to calm the storm. They could have sailed without interruption if Jesus really wanted them too. He could have asked God to keep the sea calm until they got to the other side, but Jesus knew that we all have to face storms sometime in our life. He was teaching His disciples that even though the storms would come, as long as He was in the boat with them, everything was going to be alright. He was teaching them to put their trust in Him.
The Bible says that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). As Christians, we have nothing to fear. Our Savior is right there along side us. Your storm or your trial might seem really bad right now. You might feel like you’re not going to make it. The waves may seem high and the winds seem too hard to bear, but I want you to know that He will always be there.
As for me, well I hope Rita passes quickly and without much harm, but I’m ready to weather the worst because I know my God is going to be right there with me. Keep us here in Houston in prayer over the next few days.
w/muchluv,
geno
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