The Thunderstorm

Another post from the other site:

A thunderstorm has just hit. I stepped outside on my balcony and sat down in my favorite chair (well, it’s my only chair out there), took Shadow Forest (my iPod), and put on the playlist, “By The Sea.”

The beach is probably my favorite place in God’s creation. Close behind is the forest if you couldn’t guess yet. I find God so deeply in these places.

At the beach the wind and water mix to soothe me in ways that prove the heart of God. I can sit and stare out at the waves breaking over the sand for hours. It is magical. It is one of the places I experience, “Dreamtime”. In a future blog, I will post some words I have written about Dreamtime. In short, it is an ancient place that sets eternity in my heart.

Tonight, as I sat on my porch with Shadow Forest, I experienced a darker, but still beautiful aspect of Dreamtime. The wind and rain danced across my face reminding me of the beach. But it was the deep power of the thunder, and the intense stabs of white lightning that stunned me. A powerful blast, and a flicker of light knocked out the power in my apartment complex. There was nothing but darkness. In the middle of the sheer power of my God, I was afraid. Bono whispered in my ears:

See the stone set in your eyes,
See the thorn twist in your side,
I wait for you.

Sleight of hand and twist of fate,
on a bed of nails she makes me wait.

And I wait without you,
With or without you.

Through the storm we reach the shore,
you give it all , but I want more,
and I’m waiting for you,

With or without you,
I can’t live, with or without you.

In that moment I closed my eyes and held my arms close. I sat in awe and fear of God’s majesty. He is NOT a tame lion. If you should ever forget this, sit out in a thunderstorm by yourself in the middle of the night. Oh, the wonders I learn through his creation.

In that moment I connected with all those who have gone before me, all those who are with me, and all those who will come after me. Eyes closed, I felt the breath of God. Oh, how I long to draw close to him, and leave this world behind.

In that moment I felt a great strength well up within me. The wild heart of a daring warrior. And yet, the fear remains. The paradoxes and ironies of this existence create a circle that must have a creator--a seashell unbroken by the breaking waves.

And still the rain comes down, still the lightning strikes, still the thunder pounds, still the waves crash, still His power roams stilling and stealing my heart.

Be still. Be still in this thunderstorm.