In the Eye of the Storm

In Louisiana, we have five seasons: winter, spring, summer, fall, and hurricane. I’ve lived through many hurricanes, some minor, some catastrophic. One characteristic of hurricanes is the eye. The wind and rain spiral in a counterclockwise direction until ultimately an area of clear weather forms near the center of the circulation. It’s all chaos in the storm, except for that eye, where there are blue skies and calm air.

I recently realized I’m living in the eye of a storm. Recent weeks have brought many worries and family drama. My husband and I have received unfortunate news and have made some crucial decisions. During this time, it seemed that each day brought a new crisis or situation with which to deal. Sometimes there was little time to pray before decisions. We made the best decisions we could. At one point I felt like I would explode if one more situation appeared in my life. How would I deal with all of this stress? When would it all end? How long could I keep dealing with these multiple crises?

As I took all this to prayer, I wondered out loud, How am I able to deal with all this? It was then that I realized that God had placed me in the eye of this life storm. I noticed that, as convoluted as the situations were, I was able to stay relatively calm. I was able to make decisions. I was coping. As I sat in prayer, looking around the eye of my storm, I noticed several things.

• The reason I was in the eye was because of God’s generous presence. God had my back. I was not to go through this alone. God had given me the gifts of prayer, presence, and people. At the height of the storm, I asked God to help me to pray and stay centered on God. I knew from past experience that if I leaned on God and didn’t try to do it all myself, God would be there, right next to me, supporting me. And God, being ever faithful, was indeed again there for me.
• The eye of my storm was made up of many graces. There were graces I had asked for and some I hadn’t, graces like wisdom, patience, compassion, hope, strength, and empathy. All were given to me exactly when I needed them. These graces made the peace and calm of the eye possible.
• The eye of my storm held God’s power and inspiration. Standing in the eye, I felt God as creator, redeemer, and sanctifier. I felt connected to God. I felt understood. I felt inspired by God’s love and care for me.
• The eye of my storm held the truth. In the surrounding storm were doubts, fear, desolation, and temptations that were not of God. Focusing on the things in the storm was leading me down a scary path. The eye held God’s truth and peace, which gave me strength to endure the difficulties I was facing.

At some point in our lives, we all face a storm of some kind. Next time you find yourself in the midst of a life storm, notice where you are standing. Are you caught up in the storm’s swirl of fear and chaos? Or are you watching the storm from the peaceful center of the eye? Remember that God is always there, always inviting us into the eye of the storm.

Photo by PIXNIO.