Walker's Radar...

I was caught a little unaware last week when the tornado sirens suddenly began sounding their alarms.  I knew that we had the possibility of some strong thunderstorms later in the evening hours, but no reports of possible tornados were ever mentioned.

So… there I was, sitting comfortably on my couch, watching the new rendition of the role that Chuck Norris made famous in “Walker Texas Ranger” (now shorten to “Walker”) where the new Walker and his female partner are responding to an emergency situation where… you guessed it… a tornado had touched down!  And… just as they jump out of the truck in the midst of a scene of horrific damage… I leapt to my feet and declared, “Hey!  That’s not on TV!  That’s our sirens going off!”

It was actually a little funny as I went over to my back windows to see what the sky looked like.  I found myself laughing and then spotted my neighbor over the fence, standing in the middle of his yard doing the same thing! 

My first thought was to grab my emergency radio in the bedroom, so as to hear what was going on.  When I came back into the living room, it dawned on me that I could watch the visual reports on TV as well.  You see, I had satellite TV in North Carolina which was really nice until there was any atmospheric disturbance like a thunderstorm and we immediately lost the signal.  But out here I went back to cable for that one reason alone… but tend to forget at times!

Anyway, as I watched the reporting on my big screen TV, I was amazed at the clarity and detail of the information that they reported on.  They have the capability to tell their viewers exactly where the air is spinning into a possible tornado and can pretty accurately project when the disturbance will come into wherever you are watching from!  After the worst of the storm passed by my immediate area, the forecaster switched to another zone south of Tulsa and closer to Oklahoma City in order to report on what was happening there.  As he described things, he pointed out a black line on the bottom of the screen and explained that the line marked the southern border that was covered by the Doppler radar station that they used for their viewing area around the Tulsa metroplex.

The thought of that southern coverage border came back into my mind this morning when I read from 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 where the Apostle Paul taught his readers saying,

“Of course we are human, but we don't fight like humans.  The weapons we use in our fight are not made by humans. Rather, they are powerful weapons from God. With them we destroy people's defenses, that is, their arguments and all their intellectual arrogance that oppose the knowledge of God. We take every thought captive so that it is obedient to Christ.” (God’s Word ©) 

The thing that I have come to appreciate about this scripture is that it takes you beyond the human aspects of whatever situation you are dealing with at any given time.  I had to learn this the hard way when we moved back home after Bible School, and were finally able to get an accurate diagnosis on what was happening to Piper.  There were many uncomfortable things that were said and done that were very difficult for me to understand… and to not take personally.

It took a while for me to learn, but with the help of verses of scripture like ours today, I realized that the true battle for everything, including Piper’s health and the unusual family interactions, had more to do with things going on in the spiritual realm than in the natural… where they were manifested.

When I finally came to this realization, I was able to remove my focus from the particular individuals involved and center in on the real culprit... the enemy of our souls!  Remember him… he’s the one who has “only one thing in mind… to steal, slaughter and destroy” us and everything dear and meaningful to us. (John 10:10 TPT)

Paul makes it clear that the accusations we faced, were weapons being used against our faith in God and the directions we firmly believed that HE was giving us.  I eventually learned that my battle plan was to center on “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” and His Word and to deal with the spiritual battle and not get caught up in all the other things that were trying to distract us from obeying God.

In reference to the severe weather threats that we were facing last week… well, when I looked out the window, yes, the sky was a little dark in places, but it was not raining and it wasn’t even that windy… but yet the sirens were going off, telling us to go and find shelter.  In other words, even though I couldn’t see it in the natural, the threat was real and was potentially approaching us.  The radar saw what we couldn’t.  Which is sort of like what was going on with Piper and I.  The unexpected reactions we received, were only the people's physical reaction to what they thought they saw and how they saw the story ending.… but yet, all the way along… it was the parts of the story that none of us could see (ie; the things we stood in faith for) that turned out to be real… where FAITH became FACT!

And as far as the black line that marked the end of the TV station's storm coverage area goes… that just reminded me, that as we stayed “obedient to Christ” or according to the original Greek, stayed within or under the covering and influence of the Anointed One and His anointing, we stayed in His coverage area… and would always know the right way to go… or not go!

I like the idea of how weather radar can give the trained meteorologist the ability to see developing patterns that are not readily visible to the human eye alone.  It is like our taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ… which can give the informed Christian the ability to see potential hazards before they are visible in our lives!

So… I can say that I learned my lesson!  I am going to be more aware of the physical signs around me as we enter into tornado season out here in Oklahoma, just like I learned to stay close to the Lord and aware of His signs that tell me what is really going on in my life… and how HE wants me to deal with it!

Have a great week!  Stay safe, stay blessed and keep expecting God’s best for your life!