There are many storms of life but a new fear arose in the Andrews household when the weather report called for a catastrophic hurricane. I have been through two other hurricanes on the East Coast of Florida but my husband has never had the experience of the before and after affects of a hurricane. Her name was Irma. She gave her notice to the world at least a week and a half before confirming that she was heading directly for our state of Florida.
Usually in our marriage I am the one who worries about most things. Chris is always the level headed one who continues to remind me that things are always going to be okay. Not this time. There was fear, worry, and skepticism that our household would remain unscathed from such a terrible event. I found myself drawing on my tiny faith yet again to help stabilize the emotions going on in our home. Fortunately with small children they will have little to no memory of the events that occurred.
I remember talking with Chris and reassuring him that everything would be okay. We discussed our plans, our house, when we would leave and how we would prepare. Emotions were high and even I was scared. So I went to my bible and found one of my favorite verses that is becoming a theme for our family.
“Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20
I began praying and asking for God’s protection. Chris was scared, concerned, and not sure what to expect. Our conversation went from the factual details about the storm to making sure that we have the faith to know that God will protect us and pull us through this if we rely on him. It taught me that we can’t just assume we have God’s protection but that we must seek him and ask for his protection. Of course he loves us all but his power and protection are activated the more we seek him and follow his plan.
So we prepared and watched for the storm as the week approached. As we continued to watch the news it became clear it was heading right for us. I felt God confirming that yes we should evacuate and leave, but I also felt a peace that he would keep his promise of protection for our family and our home. I don’t think Chris was feeling the same. For the first time in a while I realized that I have to be the strong one who continues to remind both of us that God is going to protect us. I remember riding out the storm overnight in central Florida with our kids asleep in the bedroom. I stared at the ceiling the whole night and a few times shot up in bed wondering if I should wake the kids and take shelter. During that time I prayed and talked to God. It’s funny how there are key moments in my life where I knew without a doubt that everything would be ok. This was one of those moments. Even after the storm was over and it was morning, I found my husband still quite emotional and concerned.
I continued to draw on the scripture from Matthew and remind him that we must have faith. It doesn’t take a lot of faith it just takes a person who is not going to give up on that tiny faith, in order for the miracles of God’s protection to be clear. After the storm was over we headed home the next day. As we entered our neighborhood it didn’t look bad at first glance until we continued down the flooded streets. We made it to our home and sure enough it was unharmed. This was a miracle considering the main sliding glass doors in the back of the house did not have their shutters on. We were unable to get those shutters on and even I was having doubts that they would withstand the winds. As we entered and noticed everything was in it’s place, I reminded myself that tiny faith goes a long way.
Even though the recovery efforts took a while and we had to leave the home again with our children, we made it through the storm. The storms in our life are not always something we watch on the weather report but rather events that might cause catastrophic destruction if we are outside the will and plan of God. I am continuing to learn that keeping God at the center of each storm is truly the way to live with a full heart and divine order of protection over whatever this life of ours will bring. When you face your storms you have a chance to rely on tiny faith from a big God who knows the beginning and end of all our encounters. For the Andrews house we are going to work on praising him not just when the storms hit but when things are quiet and calm as well. God is always wanting us to conform to his plan and it is so much easier to accept the changes and valleys when we rely on that tiny faith.