It wasn’t that long ago that a powerful wind came through in a matter of minutes; as a result of that wind, we lost four trees in our yard!  I thought it was quite exciting to see the power of the wind as I stood at the front stoop with the door open.  I yelled out with excitement and was astonishment at the power, but I didn’t know that behind me, Mackie and Jonah were absorbing the display of the storm in a completely different way.  They were utterly terrified and crying.  Way to go DAD!  As is so often true in our house, my mistakes lead to an opportunity for spiritual insight.  A common question around our house since that storm is, “Daddy, is it going to storm again?”  
 
The trauma of the storm, though they weren’t harmed, left a deep impression on them.  They want to know if they are going to be safe.  Of course, I have to tell them that it will storm again, remind them that God is more powerful than the storm, and that I will be nearby.  It is just a fact they will have to grapple with: there will be new storms in their lives.  I could never promise them that they won’t face other storms.  It is the same in the Christian life.  Jesus calmed a storm in front of his terrified disciples, and they realized the magnitude of his power in a moment.  Yet just a couple of chapters later, Jesus tells them that in following Him, they will have many storms (metaphorically) that they will have to face.  The Christian life isn’t easy.  It meets resistance of every kind.  Jesus, will there be another storm?  
 
The answer is yes.  Storms undo many things in this world.  They snap trees, erode land, destroy buildings, take lives, yet there is one force it cannot prevail against.  The believer is preserved even if the mountains should fall into the sea or the earth give way (Psalm 46).  We have a great refuge in God.  But Jesus promises storms and trials for believers, and they are more than mere earthly storms.  What can separate us from the protection and love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?  Paul comforts the believer in Romans 8, Fear not dear children, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, (and just to be crystal clear) nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
 
Daddy will it storm again?  Certainly, but remember, King Jesus holds on to you tight and you shall never be lost.  His love is everlasting!

Grace and peace,
Pastor Nathan