There were two things that happened this week that I don’t like. Both happened on the same day. There was a horrible rain storm and I had to go to the dentist to have some dental work done! What a gloomy day it was. I really don’t like when it rains and I have to go out. Hearing thunder and the whistle of the wind just makes me miserable. I feel cold and I am not even outside yet, so I know that when I do go from my house to the car, I am going to be even colder. I am afraid of dentists. The combination of both of these was not a recipe for anything pleasant.
Things may look dark. They may look scary. They may look lost. They may be uncomfortable. Yet God is working.
Yet I am once again amazed at how God meets me. It was in the chair when I couldn’t go anywhere, that God got my attention. The hygienist was trying to distract me as she knew I was uncomfortable and slightly anxious. She was asking questions about the weather as she had been inside all day. She spoke about being able to hear thunder but was wondering if it was actually raining since she couldn’t see. She said two things that in the moment were profound to me. One thing she said was that “she was protected -safe inside from whatever was happening outside”. It made me think about the safety and shelter of the Lord in the midst of the storm. As Isaiah 25:4 reminds us- The Lord is our shelter in the time of storm. No matter what is crashing around us, no matter the rain that falls and the winds that blow and the sound of it all, in the Lord we are sheltered and kept safe.
The second thing she said was that her daughter loves this weather as she is able to play in the puddles and the mud. The other reason I don’t like the rain is because I don’t like puddles that get me wet, dirty and muddy. I pictured her little girl purposely seeking out the puddle and the mud and jumping in it and laughing with pure joy and giddiness. It was at that moment that I thought, she is onto something. In the storm this little girl had no worries. She sought after what she could do to enjoy the storm instead of worry. She played with what was messy before her and made it fun. She knew how to make the best of the storm.
It was then that I was reminded of Psalm 40:1-3, “I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD.” In the storm we can know that God is close and present. He lifts us out and puts us on firm foundation- not wet, muddy or sinking but solid and clean. And there I can sing! The storm is not going to last and it is God who will take me through it. I might as well choose to dance in it. A new song is coming.
My dental appointment went well. I didn’t feel any pain even though there was more work that wasn’t shown in x-ray pictures but was under the surface that was revealed and needed to be done. As I said, I don’t like dentists yet I was so thankful that He was able to deal with what was under the surface and have me rise from the chair with nothing left to destroy my teeth and cause further problems. I am sure you know where I am going with this. It is Easter weekend. Jesus was put in the grave, yet He was taking care of what was under the surface and could not be seen. He revealed His power. He revealed what needed to be taken care of, destroying the enemy so that he was powerless. He took away the enemy’s ability to cause us lasting problems.
1 Corinthians 6:14, “And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power.”
God always has a plan. Things may look dark. They may look scary. They may look lost. They may be uncomfortable. Yet God is working. If I had not gone to the dentist, I would have remained in growing pain and had a more extreme problem. What was under the surface needed to be taken out.
Today we can be reminded that what was under the surface was exposed and defeated forever. God has been raised and we will rise in His power in every situation that comes against us. Two things I didn’t like, yet the one I love spoke loud and clear to me. We are victorious no matter what!
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