Stormy Weather

Storms take place on Earth and in the lives of people 

Thunder and lightning storms are a part of life in most areas of the United States. The fear of thunder and lightning is common; the sudden loud booms and blinding light can make the bravest storm-chaser jump and run for cover. Back in the old days, people taking shelter from the storm would unplug everything, and then, call the family to the basement, or to the stairwell, until the storm passed. Little did they know, that there really was no safe hiding place. The Bible says in Job 36:32, “He fills his hands with lightening and commands it to strike its mark.” After years of taking precaution by unplugging appliances and sitting still in a stairwell; one family came face to face with lightning, and the worse scenario actually happened. The sturdy cinderblock home outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was struck by lightning, and it was struck hard!   

Photo by J. Taylor - The lightning that traveled through the house exited through the roof

While the family was watching television downstairs one evening; it began to storm. All of a sudden; a large explosion, falling plaster and debris, an exploding television, a room that turned dark, and a family that could hardly see or hear each other due to the volume of the crash, began to scramble. The lightning entered through an upstairs open bedroom window, passed through the bedroom, and made an exit through the bedroom door. The voltage was so intense that it slammed the bedroom door on the way out, melting the metal strips and sealing the door shut. One of the children was in that bedroom. Then, the lightning traveled down the hallway corridor, entered the master bedroom, and blew out through the roof. Part of the roof and side of the house were blown to smithereens. The hole in the roof was so large that they could look right up into the heavens from inside that bedroom and watch the storm and rain as it poured down onto the bed and furniture below. 

Photo by J. Taylor - The lightning left this debria on top of the bed as it exited the roof 

A single bolt of lightning can discharge up to one hundred million volts of electric and reach temperatures up to 650,000 degrees Fahrenheit.  Temperatures approaching this magnitude are up to five times the surface temperature of the sun.1   Even though the lightening entered in that bedroom and passed right by the child, sealing him in the room, surrounded by all of that heat and voltage; not one hair on his head was singed. In fact, the entire family escaped without a scratch, according to God’s providence. All those years of hiding in the stairwell couldn’t shield them from the lightning, but God could. He had total control over the storm and over their lives.

Many people of faith are familiar with the incident described in Matthew 8:23–27 when Jesus calmed the storm. The Sea of Galilee is surrounded by hills. Winds blowing close to the sea intensify and sometimes cause sudden violent storms with little warning. At such times, the water erupts into raging waves. The disciples, who were veteran fishermen, spent their lives on this huge lake and were accustomed to stormy weather. But on this occasion, they panicked because they had been caught without warning and the danger was great. The most violent of storms on Earth can sneak up without notice; much of the same way storms arrive in the lives of people. Jesus not only calms the storms of nature, but also, the storms that one experiences in life.  Although storms can be frightening, one must have faith to know that only God has all the forces of nature at his command and he has the power to unleash or restrain them at his will, on Earth, and in the lives of his people.

Most times, storms develop in a person’s life to increase their faith and help them to grow. There are other times that they are a direct result of disobedience. Consider Jonah 1:1–4; Jonah knew that God had a job for him, but he didn’t want to do it. So God used a storm to put the prophet back on track. The story goes on to say that Jonah considered being buried alive and began to pray to the Lord. He remembered God, and God heard his prayer inside the fish. In spite of Jonah’s disobedience, after he repented, the Lord saved him. Although Jonah ran away from God, the Lord gave him another chance to do his work. (Jonah 2:1–2, 9; 3:1–3)  After that, Jonah obeyed God and proclaimed his message in Nineveh, fulfilling his true purpose in life. 

For more articles on the forces of nature:

No Rain, No Gain     

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-27475-Nature--Spirituality-Examiner~y2009m11d1-No-rain-no-gain 

In the Eye of a Hurricane

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-27475-Nature--Spirituality-Examiner~y2009m11d4-In-the-eye-of-the-storm

Earthquakes

Rainbows 

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-27475-Nature--Spirituality-Examiner~y2009m11d7-Rainbows-in-the-Sky

The Forces of Nature

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-27475-Nature--Spirituality-Examiner~y2009m11d9-The-Forces-of-Nature

For more on nature and spirituality:

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-27475-Nature--Spirituality-Examiner~y2009m10d23-The-Earth-Speaks

Click here to order Joanne’s Book: A Down to Earth Bible Study, AMG Publishers