before the storm

 As I was driving down the dirt road this morning on my way to work, the clouds caught my attention. It was definitely one of those times I wish I had a camera with me, but that's probably the only thing I really miss after getting rid of my cell phone two years ago. Since I couldn't get a picture, here's something similar:

Image from free stock

It was early morning, the sky up high light blue and full of puffy white clouds. Under that, though, was a layer blowing in--still not really storm clouds, they were gray and wispy, swirling and dancing. They were moving quickly but it looked like a lot faster since the clouds above them weren't moving.

What really made me stop, though, wasn't the clouds. Instead it was the flock of birds.

Not my picture--from free stock

 

I'm not sure how many there were, but they were riding the drafts with the storm clouds moving in. They rose and fell with the air, barely flapping their wings. I'm sure they knew the storm was coming--it seems animals always do. They could see all the signs. I'm sure they felt the pressure change and could probably even sense the electrical changes in the air. Instead of cowering and hiding somewhere, though, they were riding the wind. They were dancing in the updrafts as the storm blew in. They knew without a doubt that their Creator was stronger than the storm that was coming their way.

Right now, we know there's a storm coming. We can see the signs, the changes in events and circumstances that tell us that something's about to hit. We can feel the changes in pressure. It's tempting to cower and hide away, to try to figure out a way to protect ourselves from the storm.

My prayer is that we can all be like those birds. I pray that we ride the wind as the storm blows in, confident that our Creator is stronger than the storm coming our way.

^"25 Here is the bottom line: do not worry about your life.
Don’t worry about what you will eat or what you will drink.
Don’t worry about how you clothe your body.
Living is about more than merely eating, and the body is about more than dressing up.
²⁶ Look at the birds in the sky. They do not store food for winter. They don’t plant gardens.
They do not sow or reap—and yet, they are always fed because your heavenly Father feeds them.
And you are even more precious to Him than a beautiful bird.
If He looks after them, of course He will look after you.
²⁷ Worrying does not do any good; who here can claim to add even an hour to his life by worrying?

²⁸ Nor should you worry about clothes. Consider the lilies of the field and how they grow.
They do not work or weave or sew, and yet their garments are stunning.
²⁹ Even King Solomon, dressed in his most regal garb, was not as lovely as these lilies.
³⁰ And think about grassy fields—the grasses are here now, but they will be dead by winter.
And yet God adorns them so radiantly.
How much more will He clothe you, you of little faith, you who have no trust?

³¹ So do not consume yourselves with questions:
What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?
³² Outsiders make themselves frantic over such questions;
they don’t realize that your heavenly Father knows exactly what you need.
³³ Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and then all these things will be given to you too.
³⁴ So do not worry about tomorrow. Let tomorrow worry about itself.
Living faithfully is a large enough task for today."
Matthew 6:25-34, VOICE