Peace in the Storm

A huge crack of thunder woke me up at 3:30 this morning. It was then that I realized that it was raining very hard. Several more flashes of lightening and a couple of more huge thunder rolls later, I realized something else: my youngest daughter was in bed with us.

She does not like storms and when the thunder woke her up, she came to our room. After unsuccessfully trying to convince her to go back to her own bed, my wife, Sara, decided to left her crawl in beside her. When lightening lit up the sky again, my daughter jumped over Sara so that she could sleep between us and that is when I woke up.

Now, we generally don’t let our kids sleep in our bed. In fact, I think it has happened only a handful of times, but there was something nice about it this time. The storm had not changed. In fact, if anything, it had become worse, but there was my daughter, no longer scared, sleeping like a baby between her parents.

It made me think back to times when, as a little kid, I would go to my mom’s room when I was scared in the night. She could not take away the bad dream that I had, or the storm that raged outside, but just having her there made all the difference in the world.

There is something about having your parents nearby that makes a huge difference. Knowing that you are not alone changes everything.

When the writer of the book of Hebrews wanted to encourage his readers, he reminded them that, “ God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?’ (Hebrews 13:5-6)

No matter what you are facing today, please remember that God is near. He is anxious to help you. He is glad when you call on him and he is happy to help you find the peace that you need.

After all, he is our father!

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