Thunder and Lightning!

“Pow!”, “Bam!”, “Zonk!”  What a wild night!  I think our whole community was taken by surprise last night when out of nowhere we were hit with repeated thunder and lightning that rolled through the area from about 1:00 AM on.  There were still some rumblings this morning when I finally got up around 7:30!

I don’t think that anyone was more shook up by it than our normally – nothing bothers me- dog!  She was originally lying on the floor on my wife’s side of the bed and then began to pace around the house going upstairs for awhile and then finally settling restlessly right to me so that I could lean over and pet her every time the thunder clapped!  And my wife slept through it all!

Then about half way through the night I remembered that my son and his family were camping on the coast with last night being their first night!  When I text him this morning he replied saying that it was nonstop thunder and lightning and they finally abandoned the tent after three hours of it and spent the rest of the night at the house of some close family friends who live a few miles away!  As of breakfast this morning they were heading back to camp to resume their mini-vacation.

It would seem that this life is filled with all kinds of unexpected surprises!  I guess you could almost counsel young people starting out in life “to expect the unexpected and you’ll make it through fine!”  Fine… if your trust is founded in the love of our heavenly Father!  Some individuals handle the unexpected well, while others tend to get nervous and stressed out.

I was commenting to my wife as we walked around our little community lake yesterday of how she seemed to thrive the more chaotic things got!  I am not too sure where she gained this trait as I have not seen it exemplified in the rest of her immediate family through the years.  Maybe it was just a part of God’s special equipping as He knew we would be working with the youth and children’s ministries throughout our lives, to say nothing about raising four of our own kids!

I can still picture her holding a new born in one hand while changing the diaper of another child on the changing table.  Then with one quick move she would fold the soiled diaper and toss it over her head into the pail on the other side of the room!  It was all one big fun challenge to her.  I would stand there with my mouth wide open and she would just smile and laugh as she took both kids into the kitchen for a bottle or two!

I believe that this is the way that God wants us to live our daily lives, with a patient joy and peace that is driven by our desire to see the love of God at work in our lives.  Then when the surprises hit, like the unexpected thunder and lightning last night, we’ll just calmly rise to the occasion, trust in the Lord, listen to His voice and make it through with flying colors!

That is what the Apostle Paul was sayng when he talked about how “the peace of God which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7 KJV)  We were designed to live according to His Word and therefore with His peace.  Any other approach will lead us into worry, stress and instability in this life!  Have a great week… mine started out with a “Boom!” so I am sure it is going to be a terrific one!  Stay in tune to His Word, and keep asking yourself… “What am I expecting today?”