Praise You in the Storm

“We needed to believe that God, who gave his Son, was giving us all that we needed and that was beauty enough, even without a happy ending. Though God did not answer my prayer the way I wanted, He answered...He did not say yes to my request, but He did not remain silent. I will make this beautiful too, he whispered.” -Katie Davis Majors’ Daring to Hope

How the time flies! It has been several months since I last sat down to write a blog post. Several months full of messy, busy, prayer-filled days. God has been working in ways that we could have NEVER seen coming. Like it did to so many others, Hurricane Harvey left its mark on our life. My husband and I watched our first home together, a home that we got to call “ours” for only a couple of months, flood during the hurricane. While we are still very much in the thick of the “rebuilding” process, I have been truly amazed at the goodness of God every step of the way...how He can even cover such uncertainty and heartache in His peace and joy. My hope for these open, honest words is to give glory to God for His faithfulness, and maybe even whisper words of hope to someone finding themselves “in the thick of things” right now...you’re not alone!

Jesus was with me from even before the beginning of it all. As I look back, I realize that God was lovingly preparing me for this moment for months. Since I was not going back to teaching full time this year, my summer was slower, less stressful than ever before. Many of my days were filled with countless quiet moments in my “prayer chair” downstairs, reading God’s Word and strengthening my relationship with Him. As August rolled around, I felt more joyful and at peace than I had in a long time. And most importantly, I felt God working in and through my life. As I look back, I truly believe that God used those quiet months, a divinely planned summer of rest, to prepare my heart and faith for what was coming. Because of that time with Him, I was so much more prepared to cry out to Jesus during the trials of the storm...so much more prepared to TRUST that God would provide even when we couldn’t see what the next day would look like...so much more prepared to know that HE is ALL we need.

Harvey was a whirlwind of emotions for so many people. So many emotions rippled through me over those storm-filled few days...fear, uncertainty, anxiety...but the one emotion that I will never forget from this experience is PEACE. Peace that was an answer to a prayer, in the very moment that I so desperately needed it! We evacuated our house early on in the storm, before we knew flooding was even a possibility for our neighborhood. We soon learned of the reality, though, that we would be taking on water soon. My heart ached and fear surged, like it did for so many others in this storm's path. I felt helpless and the tears were inevitable. We weren’t at our house, we couldn’t save anything from downstairs, this couldn’t really be happening!? My prayer for what seemed like years, when really only hours, was “God, please keep the water out.” Well, like Katie Davis Majors perfectly put it in her book Daring to Hope, “He answered...He did not say yes to my request, but He did not remain silent.” The water sure enough had started to enter our house, not just our house but our HOME, and God had not answered that prayer the way I was hoping for. As I lay in bed trying to stop the tears, the heartache, long enough to just get to sleep, I cried out to Jesus. I prayed with all the faith I had built stronger than ever over the last several months and asked simply for PEACE, nothing else. Within seconds, I will never forget the overwhelming comfort that Jesus used to answer that prayer. A peace like I had never felt before. My heart stopped racing, the tears stopped falling, and the anxiety completely disappeared. As if Jesus were pulling a blanket, woven completely out of His peace, from my toes to my head, my heart was no longer torn. I felt so loved, so safe, and so heard...He is faithful and He did not remain silent in the midst of this storm. This peace has been shaken several times over the months following Harvey, and I have certainly had my moments of being “over the mess”, but never for too long. That memory of Jesus rushing to my rescue when praying for peace has reminded me many times to keep looking to Him, to keep trusting in Him.

“With firm purpose you maintain peace; in peace, because of our trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever! For the Lord is an eternal Rock!” Isaiah 26:3-4

Throughout this trial, God has been SO present in so many different ways! I truly feel like I have seen him answering prayers and hard at work in our lives more than I have ever noticed before. So much JOY! My husband and I were safe...thank you, God! We were able to get back into our house weeks earlier than we expected...thank you, God! I had exchanged numbers with our neighbor, just in passing, DAYS before the flood...thank you, God! Because as the waters started coming in, these beautiful neighbors went into our home for us to save some of our most treasured memories. And one of the only pieces of furniture that we could save...my “prayer chair”! It seems so fitting and it has been getting quite a bit of use upstairs over the last couple months...thank you, God! We had friends and family drop everything and take off work to run into and “gut” the muck that was our flooded house with us. God gave me shoulders to cry on and trusted prayer warriors to lean on...thank you, God! Friends led us to a company who could start working on our house immediately. Our mold certificate came back clean and clear the very first time. We quickly found a contractor who we trusted and knew was our first choice, and we prayed that hiring him would work out...it did! My sister and her husband graciously let their home be “our home” for an entire month. A beautiful friend, with no hesitation, gave us a refrigerator to use as our one and only appliance once we were able to move back into the upstairs of our house. There have been countless “perfect timing” moments that only God could have orchestrated. For all of this, so much more I haven't mention, and so much still to come...thank you, God! Even in the midst of our trials, He is working all things for good! I could have so easily missed the beauty of some of these blessings had I not been searching for His joy. He is covering even the unexpected moments in joy.

“We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

While watching our home get pieced back together little by little, I have spent countless hours just sitting with God. Right now, I am approaching the end of a twenty-day “God is Faithful” Bible reading plan that I have been working through. It has strengthened my faith in the Lord and has reminded me over and over again that God is FOR us, and that He is faithful in all of His ways. His ways may not be the ways that I expected or even the ways that I prayed for, but He has such a perfect plan, and it will all work out for good. As we sit here, in the middle of the rebuilding process with still many weeks to go, I have already learned so much about our good and gracious God through this trial. He is constantly preparing us! Whatever season we are in, God is at work. Much like He prepared my heart over those summer months to rely fully on Him, I know that He is preparing you, and me, for something wonderful right now, too. After having to throw away SO many memories and precious items that I once thought “I could never live without,” I realized just how quickly the “things” here on earth can be taken away, but that God, with his loving tenderness, is steadfast. He is all we need! I am so thankful for a loving Father who has been ever-present throughout this unexpected journey. I have learned to trust Him and lean on Him more than ever before. My marriage has grown stronger and I have grown even closer to my husband. I am filled with more peace, faith, love and joy than I could have ever expected...especially in the midst of such uncertainty. He turned a raging storm into such beauty. In His own perfect way, He covers everything in joy!

I pray that God will keep reminding me to LOOK for Him and His goodness in everything. My prayer for you is that no matter what challenge or trial you are going through right now, you will be able to look to and for God, for His joy, and SEEK Him and His faithfulness. God is Faithful. He works all things for good. He will even cover your trials in JOY!

Joyfully In Him,

Anna

My teaching chair of five years turned "prayer chair"!