I have not personally experienced any natural disasters. Vermont is a funny place, where it can be sunny where I am and 5 miles away at work, my husband will call me and say it’s pouring out. Weather here is weird.
Last spring flood waters devastated our state capital. Homes flooded beyond repair. Every business in the downtown district was completely destroyed; many did not recover, coming so close on the heels of Covid.
In the summer, my daughters and I drove through this city, just 30 miles away from us and it felt like we had driven to another country. Buildings were empty, furniture and trash just thrown on the sidewalks; it was nothing like the beautiful city we had visited just the previous summer.
Although I have never experienced a natural disaster, I have been through many personal floods. I have had times in my life where my circumstances left me feeling like I was drowning, and I wasn’t sure I would be able to recover.
Luke 6:47-48, NLT says:
I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built.
While teaching the crowds that followed him, Jesus gives a striking illustration of what life looks like for those who hear his teaching and follow it. He does not say following him will only bring sunshine days and easy living. He says the floods will come. There will be hard days; there will be days that may try to knock you down.
If you hear Jesus’ teaching and follow it, you will build yourself a firm foundation. It will be solid. If you take a hold of his truth and let it transform your life, you will have a foundation that cannot be washed away. When the floods come; when the waves crash and the wind howls, you will stay standing.
The first major flood in my life came in an OB/GYN office. My husband and I were told we were being referred to the hospital for further scanning on our baby. So many questions flooded my brain. So much fear and so much uncertainty.
Floods of ‘what if’s’ crushed my heart. I could not handle it. It was more than I could bear. God met me in the flood.
I am so thankful for the foundation of my faith. I am thankful for the many people who have influenced my life and taught me how to follow Jesus. I am thankful for each lesson and each trial that built me into who I am.
During the floods in my life, it never once occurred to me to turn my back on Jesus. If nothing else, those floods made me run to Jesus. On the days when I couldn’t stand on my own, he held me up.
I drew closer to Jesus when there was nothing else I could do. When I did, he met me right where I was. When I cried out to him and asked why, he reminded me how much he loved me and that he was in control. I can look back on those days and still feel his presence, even when I didn’t understand what was happening.
