The Lord answered Job out of the storm…
Filed in General |Journal,
I know I’ve shared my tornado story before, but because of recent events involving hurricane Gustav, my memory went back to an encounter that took place in 1975/76. I want to begin this entry with how God can speak to us in the storm. After all, He did this for Job.
“Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm and said, ‘Now gird up your loins like a man; I will ask you, and you instruct Me.’” - Job 40:6-7 NASB
The weather had turned weird to say the least. It was getting colder. An elder and I were talking in the church yard when we looked up. Bearing down on us was a tornado. You could see the trees snapping and jerking. Its path was clear. There was no way of escape.
The elder jumped in his truck and spun out. I started running to our ‘trailer’ parsonage where Betty and Shana were. Too late - The swirling wind knocked me to my knees and I watched the front porch of our mobile home fly through the woods. But an interesting thing happened to both Betty and me. Our trailer parsonage itself did not even shake, not one tiny bit. And while I was running towards the parsonage, the Lord spoke in my heart, “Satan would like to destroy you, but he cannot. I have you in the palm of my hand.”
So off we went. I was to be the lead car. Out of Birmingham, Alabama, we picked up three generators. Off again. My GPS showed the shortest route home was to go through Natchez, Mississippi. What I didn’t realize at the time was that my GPS would take us straight into the hurricane. (Both Nathan and Shana had called asking us not to return home. Course stubbornness is one of my major gifts.)
No, the Lord did not speak to me in the storm this time. But His overseeing love was our guide and our protection. Just out of Natchez we began to catch the strong wind and the rain. Found one station in Natchez. Everything else was shut down tight. We cross the Mississippi River. Trees were down. Electrical lines were down. We pushed on. There was no turning back. The closer we came to Pineville, the stronger the winds. But to make a long story, short, the Lord’s hand was stretched over us all the while and we made it home safely.
It looked like a war zone. All of Rapides Parish was out of electricity. (We have parishes where other states have counties.) But the beauty in all this is how people came together. Really wish I could share all the wonderful things that happened, but that would take a book. Anyway, we are back on board with electricity in place, internet back up, and our phone lines working.
Ok, now for a bit of fun…
Would you believe that while we were in Tennessee, we came across a picture of our great-great grand parents. Betty and I did not know that our family lineage connected backup the line. In fact our great-great grand pappy and grand mammy look a lot like us. See what you think. 
Yup, our great-great grand mama was quite a looker. And being the wealthy land-owner that she was, naturally she needed a body guard. That’s where great-great grand pappy came in. And thats the story of love. Aren’t they a handsome couple!
Now, don’t take any of this serious. The picture is really of Betty and me. I’ve always loved those old timey pictures. Couldn’t pass up a chance to have a couple made.
Does God still speak to His people in the storm? Let’s take a short Bible study that looks at the mystery of the Christian’s life.
God speaks - We are to listen…
There are mysteries to the Christian life that can only be understood with the heart. A believer is being led even when he is not conscious of it. God leads us to repentance. God leads us to victory.
As a beginning place, let’s listen to David. The sweet Psalmist of Israel said:
“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me.
“If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night.’ Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You. For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well.” (Psalm 139:7-14)
The Bible tells us that our purpose and calling in life was recorded in God’s book before we were ever born. The statement most often used for this predetermined plan of God is, “From the foundation of the world.” That statement is used ten times in the new covenant writings. The reason it is so predominate in the New Testament is because much of God’s redemptive work was hidden from the eyes of past generations. But now they are revealed in Christ.
The apostle says in one place,
“Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.” (1 Corinthians 2:12)
In another place Paul says,
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)
David says much the same;
“And in Your book were written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them.” (Psalm 139:16)
But we can carry this a little further. Two of the several signs that a person truly belongs to the Lord is, first, their love for Jesus Christ. But secondly it is this innate feeling of the heart that we are really not of this world. The apostle explains it this way;
“But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” (Galatians 6:14)
The NLT says it this way,
“Because of that cross, my interest in this world died long ago, and the world’s interest in me is long dead.” It is this ‘other worldliness’ that serves to remind the believer of his or her divine destiny. Jesus Himself told the disciples, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.” (John 15:19)
And so we come to circumstances and situations in life. How did we come to be where we are at this moment? Did not God ordain our pathway to bring about certain desired results. Even when Satan tempts us to take things in our own hands, the Lord ordains circumstances to divert us. He can take the most adverse situation and cause it to work together for our good.
The point is that the Lord does His greatest work in the hearts of His children. God’s purpose for all believers is that we come to Jesus with a full heart of faith and let our faith rest in Him forever. Jesus Himself is the author and the finisher of your faith. You don’t have to worry about finding God’s will in your life. You are His will. And God works His own will in your life.
So, does God speak to us in the storms of life. Absolutely and without fail. He speaks the language of the heart. We just need to learn to listen with our heart.
Think about it.
The Lord bless you,
Buddy
