"Storms" Of Life

The rain started just about the time we were sitting down to eat dinner. After dinner, the boys went down to my parents' (about a half mile down our dirt road) to play dominoes with them. It had been a beautiful, sunny, warm day here in Maine...the kind vacationers dream about. Those of us who live on the coast tend to get pretty used to these quick moving summer thundershowers after a hot summer day...so we really didn't think much about it.

Until the rain started...rain like I've never heard before. And the wind...we watch as trees bent right over to the ground. Then the thunder and lightening...so close, so unbelievably intense.

Of course, I've always felt that "storms" are so much worse at night when it is dark. Fear of the unknown, I guess. We wondered how long the power would be out...we wondered if our sons and my parents were safe...we wondered if we would lose trees...or our garden...or our home.

This morning we woke to calm. The morning weather report claimed that there were isolated tornadoes, quarter size hail, and hurricane winds last night. You'd never believe it this morning...the sun is shining, the sky is blue, the birds are singing. Well, I guess there are still a few signs of last night's tempest...







Many trees down...











Roads washed out...especially our dirt road...








And the corn took quite a beating...


But the biggest shock for us came this morning...when we heard what had happened at my parent's home the night before. I stopped in on my morning walk to wish my dad a "Happy Birthday" (he's 87 today!)only to find that they had suffered major damage from the storm. Half of their driveway was washed away into the cove...along with the hill next to their garage. The raging waters blew a hole through the cellar door, flooded the cellar and burst through the door on the ocean side of the house. Their garage is filled with about 3 inches of "driveway"...and there is a very large deep hole under the kitchen in the cellar. We are waiting on the insurance company to come and assess the damage. My heart cried for my dad...what a birthday present. But his response to the whole situation was..."I thank God that the boys were here with us last night". I soon found out my sons noticed that the driveway was caving in...went out into the "storm" to rescue the truck (which had already started to sink down into the hole) and the other two vehicles in the driveway...moving them to safer ground. They then went around the entire house, putting down storm windows as the rain came pouring in...mopping up huge puddles on the floor...rescuing tools and other items from the garage as the water rushed through...and remaining calm throughout the whole ordeal. My dad told me that he didn't know what they would have done if "his boys" hadn't been there. And my sons never said a word about it when they arrived home safely last night...because they didn't want to worry us.

Why is it that I continue to be amazed when God puts people in certain places at just the right moment? I see this all the time...you would think that by now I would just come to expect it...for isn't that exactly what a Savior does?

Funny thing...you only notice the "storm" this morning if you look down...

if you look up...

the sky is blue...

and the Son is shining.

God is so good.


"He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still..."
Psalm 107:29