A distant rumble with the cadence of gently falling rain can be peaceful. But add thunder crashes, howling wind and jagged streaks of lightening, and it becomes unnerving. What do you do when the storms of life batter you mentally, emotionally, and spiritually?
Everyone faces storms. I admire how Noah faced his; what a step of faith to build such an incredible boat in anticipation of the impending storm. Did you know that Noah’s flood experience is the most precisely recorded year in Scripture? And did you know there are no less than 268 global flood stories from various ancient civilizations that reflect a similar theme to the Genesis account? They’re not as detailed, but how do we account for such a permeating story if indeed nothing like that ever happened?
Emotional storms will come – are you prepared? Noah was not saved because the ark was so seaworthy, but because God is so trustworthy. Noah built by faith, but God sustained the ark through the storm; he made it a sanctuary from the unnerving chaos. He’ll do the same for you if you, too, build your life by faith.
Blessings often come disguised and sometimes that disguise appears more like a weakness than a strength.
The famous Italian born conductor, Arturo Toscanini was one of those people who found a blessing disguised as a weakness. At nineteen he was playing cello in a small European orchestra, but he was so terribly nearsighted, he couldn’t read the music on the stand in front of him. His only option was to memorize it. As the story goes, the conductor of this small orchestra fell ill on the day of a performance and young Toscanini was the only member who knew the score. That evening he stepped up and flawlessly conducted the opera of Aida without ever referring to the music. The audience was delighted and responded enthusiastically. That was the beginning of a marvelous career that spanned nearly seven decades. One has to wonder, however, how his music career might have been different if he’d had 20/20 vision. The New Testament reminds us, “all things work for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose…” So, check your weaknesses carefully – they may be blessings in disguise!