He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them. – Psalm 145:19
As the rain poured heavily on the road in front of me, my windshield wipers beat a steady rhythm as I drove through the pitch black night of downtown Austin during a citywide blackout. The year was 2000, I was a single mother and had just relocated to the “big city” with my 3-year old daughter to take the job of my dreams and start a new life. Katie and I were on our way to meet my new boss and his wife for dinner at Olive Garden to celebrate our move and to better acquaint our families, but the freak power outage was not something we had planned on, nor were we prepared for it.
The glare of oncoming car headlights combined with the white-hot flashes of lightning made it difficult for me to see anything at all and I silently bemoaned the fact I hadn’t replaced the wipers when the Wal-Mart tech told me they were worn out. Pretty sure I had already missed my turn a few roads back, I struggled mightily to make out the street names, slowing my car down to a crawl in order to read the approaching signs. It was becoming increasingly obvious that we would arrive late, if we made it at all. I didn’t own a cell phone and didn’t have a way to even contact them to let them know we were lost…this was most certainly NOT the impression I wanted to make.
Hot tears of frustration slipped down my cheeks as I gripped the steering wheel of my car. I pulled over into an empty parking lot to clear my head and attempt to calm my jittery nerves. I had to make a decision.
Temporarily forgetting that I had a tiny passenger in the backseat, I slapped my hands against the wheel and yelled out to no one in particular, “I can’t see SQUAT!” I like to think that Jesus made some intercession on my half-hearted prayer that went something like this, “Lord, I’m lost and need your help. I am in a city I don’t know and I’m scared and alone. Please help me find my way.”
My decision made, I turned around to tell Katie we were heading back to our little apartment to wait out the storm. It was then that I noticed my daughter’s tiny nose pressed to the passenger window. When I asked her what she was doing, she remained steadfast in her task of looking out of the window and simply replied, “I’m looking for SQUAT!”
Sometimes we just need to know that through our trials, there is someone in our corner. We need to know that God is listening. I was so thankful to have my ‘storm buddy’ with me – someone who was helping me find my way and cheer me on. I gave thanks to God at that moment for the gift of my daughter and began singing one of the praise songs I had learned as a child, “Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God, in the mountains of His holiness. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King”
Looking back, my situation was not all that bad, but at the time, it felt hopeless until He reminded me of what was truly important. Often, we are faced with much larger problems, mountains that are so high we can’t see over them and valleys so low we can’t see how to cross them. On that night, it was something as simple as being lost in dark city with some rain coming down.
What storms in your life has God seen you through?
Visit other participants:
Amy Bayliss {Cajun Inspired} : 31 Days of Heart Matters
{A Martha Heart} : 31 Days of Prayer
Karin {Mommy Matters} : 31 Days of Intentional Parenting
Jenny {867-53oh9} : 31 Days of Social Media
Dawn {My Home Sweet Home} : 31 Days of Encouragement
Lisa Boyd : 31 Days of WordPress
*Links to all posts on this subject can be found here.