From Storms to Still Waters

Finishing a run along the Florida shores still bearing the scars of Hurricane Ida, I was taken aback by the beauty and serenity of the ocean, that just 24 hours ago, raged with towering, angry waves. With one rise and set of the moon, the fury of a storm that destroyed lives less than 200 miles away was replaced with serenity and stillness.

The difference was striking. Like sheets of glass, the light from the bright shallow sun pierced the flat placid water making it possible to see straight to the ocean floor. Gone were the shore-toppling waves that churned up sand and debris making the water dark and ominous. The power and destruction were now calm and still. The dark skies and howling destructive wind turned into peaceful breeze and crisp blue sky. 

Watching a swimmer glide through the glass like water, the God whisper broke through the beauty and said,

“I lead you beside still waters.”

Yes, the storms come for reasons I will not like nor understand. They come in many forms; a hard marriage, troubled children, illness, and even death. In this broken world, Jesus told us we would face storms. The waters will get dark, scary and hard. Yet Psalm 23 reminds us that the God who silences the waves is our shepherd. 

He is present with me in the storm and his presence leads me to still water.

What I realize as I stand in the eye of one of those storms, I can either beat the waves in anger and fight the current of the storm around me with harbored resentment and my endless “whys?”. Or, like a sheep to his shepherd, I can follow him. I can press into him and depend on him for my direction, my comfort, my protection, and my rest. For he has always been a good shepherd, even when I may not see it amidst the waves. 

 I think God knows our tendency to get pulled under by the rip current of our circumstances. His shoulders are big enough to handle it. He doesn’t jump out the boat as we process through deep pain and big fear. But standing on the shoreline I realized that no matter the storms I face, I lack nothing. Not because I am strong enough to handle the waves but rather because the wave calmer is my shepherd. He is a good shepherd and he will lead me to the still water  giving comfort and peace no matter the storm.