Monday Morning Devo--The Edge of the Storm, Part 5

He has made the earth by His power; He has established the world by His wisdom, And stretched out the heaven by His understanding.
When He utters His voice—There is a multitude of waters in the heavens: He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightnings for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasuries. Jeremiah 51:15-16, NKJV

Who among us has the power and ability  to create a storm? No one that I know. We know now that high pressure and low pressure relegates where storms will happen--but we can't make them happen. They've figured out how to predict when and where, but the weather is still out of our hands.

God knows.

It's a comfort to me, even when I don't relish going out in the cold or heat, wet or wind, that God is still God. I'm not in charge. Just think if I were: It would rain nearly every day, a real downpour, but just enough to provide water for the plants and trees. Every storm would have a rainbow. Occasionally, the rain would be accompanied by lightning and thunder and big winds.

It would be a warm rain, though. When the rain  left, packing away it's rainbow for the next day, the sun would come out with all it's cheery yellowness and warm it even further. Somewhere between 70 and 80, every day, without fail. No warmer, no cooler.

Now, if my husband were in charge, he'd make those rains about once a week. Never any wind, and he'd rather the temperature were between 65 and 70. Possibly some distant thunder on occasion.

My brother, on the other hand--he'd want snow once in a while. Temperature never over 60 degrees, but as low as 20 is just fine. Brrr!

Logically, we need it all: scorching heat, below freezing cold, high winds, drenching rain, driving snow, even hail. Some trees won't bloom unless they've experienced a freeze in the winter. The heat ripens the fruit.

Humans are like that. We have to have storms to give us an appreciation for the perfect weather. It's the storms that strengthen us, ripens us to maturity.

When I'd rather have sunshine, it's hard to give thanks for freezing snow--but I will anyway. When life's storms hit, may I have the grace to still trust the Creator of the earth, knowing that in spite of all I see, He is still God.

He is still God. He was there before the storm, He's there during, and He will still be there when the rainbow comes.

Thank You, Lord. Amen