Feeling a Little Foolish!

As you may have already read about in today’s news, we had a big and very active storm front move through central Oklahoma last night.  The Tulsa area where we live, was spared the main fury of the storm, although we were pummeled with some pretty strong wind gusts throughout the night and into the waking hours of today. 

The towns southwest of us did not fare so well though, with numerous tornado touchdowns which resulted in widespread damage to property and the loss of life.  The reports and pictures are still coming in and we will all be praying for the families involved and for the needs in the affected areas.

For me and Fiver, the wind tended to keep us awake and on our toes as there were a few times when I had the feeling that we would end up taking a ride into the air like Dorothy’s house did in The Wizard of Oz!  What I finally realized was that the four or five foot corridor that runs down the side of my house between the master bedroom and the fence, tends to act as an echo chamber when the winds pick up!  But even with that figured out, it was still loud and unsettling!

The funny thing though, was that I prayed numerous times in the afternoon, previous to the storm blowing in, and was standing on the Word in proclaiming God’s protection against the severe elements of the storm.  So in between the various creaks in the house and wailing of the wind, I kept reminding myself that I had prayed and set my faith in action and that all would be well with me and my family in Broken Arrow, as well as with my youngest son and his family in Edmond, which was very close to the action of the storm.

This morning I got good reports from our local family and the worst that Jeremy got was some baseball size hail as the storm passed by… with the tornado outbreaks occurring after the front moved further east.  So… what can I say?  God did it again… exactly what He promised us in His Word that He will do for us… Right?

Well… I had to answer that question again when I got up this morning and headed out of the bedroom.   My normal morning habit is to pet the dog who is usually on the couch and then open the blinds in the back of the living room.  But today instead, I made a beeline to the kitchen and opened the front blinds that look over the porch, the cul-de-sac and golf course beyond. 

In my minds eye, I was fully expecting to see some down trees and branches strewn across the normally well-manicured greens on the golf course.  But alas!  I was a little taken back because everything looked… WELL… It looked normal!

Then I heard it… and kinda felt foolish… when that small-still-voice on the inside of me clearly stated… “What did you EXPECT?  You prayed MY protection over your home and the entire neighborhood… and that is EXACTLY what you GOT!

I had to back away from the window, laugh and shake my head at that one!  I even think that the dog was giving me that “Did you really just do that… again?” look on his face as he rested his head on the arm of the couch and glanced into the kitchen!  What can I say?  Busted!  Guilty as charged!

But as I turned toward the coffee maker, I couldn’t help but to smile in my moment of embarrassment for I remembered God’s promise to us in Romans 5:5 where it declares,

“And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” (KJV)

And I knew it was because of His love for me, that He gently reminded me of my stand of faith and of His loving faithfulness to His word.  I also had to stop right there in the middle of the kitchen and raise my hands in praise to the Lord as I celebrated the inter-active involvement of His truth, not only last night, but for the entirety of my adult Christian life… Then another familiar set of verses describing the God kind of love came to mind and I found myself declaring from memory that,

“(God’s) Love joyfully celebrates (His) TRUTH and finds no delight in what is wrong.  (For His) Love is a safe place of shelter, and it never stops believing the best for others. (And best yet, God’s) Love never takes failure as defeat, for it never gives up.” (I Corinthians 13: 6-7 – TPT)

So, I can’t help but to rejoice and be thankful and glad for God’s faithfulness to His Word toward a Christian’s faith-filled prayers… and being assured that:

“…tremendous power is released through the passionate, heartfelt prayer of a godly believer!” (James 5:16 – TPT) 

I sorely miss the joy and privilege of having my wife, best friend and prayer partner to come in agreement with me when it comes to praying for any situation that I may face… like God’s protection last night!  But never-the-less, I still know the love of God and that as His son, I have the right and ability to come into the Father’s presence and ask for and believe to receive the promises in His Word for me… and the SAME IS TRUE FOR EACH OF YOU AS WELL!

Do you believe that?

Have a wonderful rest of your week… hopefully it will be as comfortable and calm as my local forecast is now predicting… and as you do… Remember His love for you while you bring your needs to Him in prayer… and then EXPECT His BEST results!