Why Storms?

I now live on the North Carolina coast, on the eastern seaboard of the United States. We experience our share of Tropical Storms and the occasional hurricane. As I sat on the sand the other morning – praying and seeking God’s direction for my day, Proverbs 8:28-29 came to mind—

Wisdom calls out: I was there when he set the clouds above,
when he established springs deep in the earth.
²⁹ I was there when he set the limits of the seas,
so they would not spread beyond their boundaries.
And when he marked off the earth’s foundations…

Yet storms seem to take exception

—spreading beyond their set boundaries, they take lives and cause millions of dollars in property damage – recurve a coastline. Like Hurricane Florence, a category one hurricane that wreaked havoc in Wilmington in 2018 with extensive flooding. A Category One is a mild storm in comparison to the Category Four hurricane Wilmington suffered in 1954. Hurricane Hazel, the worst storm on record to ever hit the Carolina Coast, brought a storm surge of over 18 feet to a large area of North Carolina’s coastline causing catastrophic damage.

Science tells us that these storms are the result of global warming and man’s poor stewardship of the earth—and honestly, there is truth in both arguments. But as a Christian, I also believe in several absolutes: I believe God is good, loving, and in ultimate control.

Which begs the question

If God is love…why storms?

If God is love, and I believe He is, why would he allow those living along the coast to suffer physical storms of such magnitude – or allow devastating earthquakes and extreme drought? Why do we suffer the emotional storms of betrayal and divorce, the loss of a child, hunger, or personal bankruptcy?

There are things a storm confronts

Physical storms strip away anything that is not anchored – the run-down and the weak things, tossing them about like a blade of grass caught in the wind. Emotional storms do the same- leaving us stripped bare, revealing what we truly trust in.

Solomon had this to say about life in Ecclesiastes 1:14 : “I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” Chasing after the wind is mentioned seven times in the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon concludes that life has no meaning apart from seeking the kingdom of God and His righteousness (see Matthew 6:33). An online site, “Got Questions” added this: “All the things we pour our lives into on earth won’t last. Our projects, our hard work, our rivalries, alliances, and successes—nothing will last. We can’t hang on to the rewards of this world any more than we can grasp the wind.”

Scripture tells us that nothing comes our way unless God first gives His permission. Satan had to get God’s permission to hurt Job (Job 1:6,12; 2:6). In Proverbs 16:1, we read that man makes his plans, but God has the final say, and in John 19:11 Jesus tells Pilate—the man in charge of the entire land—that any authority he had was because God had given it to him.

Could it be God entrusts us with our storms and trials so we can demonstrate what it looks like to lean and depend on Him for our very life—that material things are temporal, but our souls are eternal and all else is a “chasing after the wind?”

Based on the scriptural evidence, I believe every storm must get God’s permission before it can exceed its set boundaries or come our way.

Wait a hot minute!

Are you saying the storms we go through are in the will of God? That God has given His permission for every wave that hits us, and every trial we face?

2 Corinthians 1:4 tells us: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

This isn’t what I signed up for!

Oh, but you did. I remember the dean of women at our bible college telling us, “Face it, baby – you will be conformed.” This is what the Bible calls sanctification. And it’s not all as bad as it seems. Look at it this way. Life is hard. Everyone experiences physical hurt, loss, and emotional pain. But for those of us in Christ—He redeems it all. Nothing is without purpose. He makes good out of the bad. Brings hope in the midst of despair. And then He uses it all to bring Glory to His name. We cannot lose—even when we stand next to the coffin of a loved one, lose a job we’ve staked our mortgage and future on, or forever walk with a limp after engaging with the enemy—all of it serves an eternal purpose.

I don’t know about you, but if I have to face life’s storms because it’s, well, part of life, then I am glad for it all to mean something.  Aren’t you?

Have you faced a tough physical or emotional storm? How has God redeemed it and allowed you to comfort others because of it?