“Disastrophe” is a family word coined by Josh when he was about four. Being hit by three large hurricanes within six weeks sure was a disastrous catastrophe! And, yes, we did have further damage from Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne. (See story about Hurricane Charley.)
What have we learned from going through three hurricanes in six weeks? Naturally, our priorities changed for some time as we repaired, replaced, cleaned, etc. A lot more is involved in recovery than we ever knew. Mike took a hands-on crash course in home repairs from our friends and Sus learned to be more flexible and to accept limitations without complaint.
Some of the more important lessons we learned from these storms are:
• Accept what God is doing,
• Hold on to things loosely… they clutter and fill our lives,
• Relationships with God and people are more important than possessions,
• By faith, know that God is doing great things, perhaps even greater things, during “disastrophes”.
But, when has God brought great things from terrible events? What about prison? Paul had a vital ministry in several cities, but he accepted several years in prison, even to the point of execution, as God’s will. Today, we see little direct evidence of Paul’s ministry work in the eastern Mediterranean churches. Instead, he wrote most of the New Testament epistles in prison and has touched millions of lives around the world for centuries!
We desire to have the same confidence as Paul when life is tough “that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News.” (Philippians 1:12)
With our limited view, we might have questioned God and been eager to be done with repairs and to return to spending our time on ministry. We may never know what great things God will do through these storms, but we know He is good.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” – James 1:2-4 (NIV)
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