All InSample

I grew up in Houston, so hurricanes were a regular part of our summers. The good news about hurricanes is that we usually had plenty of notice to board up the windows and doors, and, if necessary, evacuate. However, it was never easy to shelter in place. The sound of the wind, rain, and hail pummeling against our house was terrifying. But even that was nothing compared to the dead silence that came over us when the eye of the storm passed overhead. There was silence like you have never heard before. No voices, no air conditioning, no rain, no refrigerator running, nothing. Just silence. 

We knew the back side of the storm was coming, about to hit our home hard and fast. The only thing we didn’t know was when it would return in all its fury. In that same Houston home where I learned to survive hurricanes, I also learned how to praise God. Unfortunately, my father was extremely abusive to me, my brothers, and especially my mom. We lived in a state of preparation for the hurricane that was my father. We never knew when he would be coming home and what kind of mood he would be in. I learned to take shelter in my room during the evening hours. The storm raged every single night and it felt like there was no escape. 

Then, one day my father was arrested while I was at school and I haven’t seen him since. The hurricane was over, so why did it feel like I was still living in the eye of the storm? When I looked back on the situation, I would feel not relief, but hurt—from my family, from the church, and from God. Why had no one rescued me from this situation? 

Many of the believers that Acts 2 talks about experienced hurt and pain. Many were tortured or killed, and all of them were persecuted. But Genesis 50:20 encourages us that our enemy “...meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive.” 

When I look back on my life now, I don’t just see God using my story after the fact. I see how He protected me and my brothers. I see the sacrifices of my mother to keep us safe. I see the intervention of the police. I see the leaders in our church who took care of me when I didn’t want to go home. I see God woven through the whole story. I see now that He was there. 

Often times, we only praise God when the hurricane ends, but that is because in the midst of the storm we aren’t looking for Him. We fixate on all the bad swirling around us and forget that He is with us in the storm and will one day use those difficult times for good. Let’s not miss the opportunities for all in worship in the middle of the storm.