Earlier I stated that my wife and I went on a cruise to the Caribbean. During the final 24hours of the cruise, there was one segment where the weather changed from a warm, mostly sunny day to a cold, wet, thunderstorms and lightining day. The transition from one to the other was relatively fast, if I had to guess, I would say within 15 minutes. As the boat continued its course through the midst of the storm an unsettling feeling could be felt throughout the boat. I'm sure more than just my wife and I thought about the Titanic (yes I know it was an iceberg that sunk the Titanic). It was unsettling because again mother nature was showing her true power and rocking this 7 ton vessel back and forth with the same ease that a child uses to when playing with a rocking chair.
The picture below is an actual picture of the weather that the boat was in. The white dots in the picture are rain drops that the camera was able to capture, there was a lot more rain than this image captures but I thought it would provide insight into what the boat faced.
Ultimately the storm subsided and the life on the boat once again resumed a lively, light hearted feeling. I could not help but reflect on times in my life when it seemed as all was going well and then all of a sudden, someone dropped a storm directly onto my head. I wish I could say that the storms in my life were easy to overcome and left no scars, but I would be lying. It is during these trials that not only has my faith been strengthened, I am also better equipped to maneuver through the remaining trials that may come my way.
Once the storms pass, I am able to praise God that His word served as my compass to navigate the dense & dangerous waters that I faced. Some of the greater dangers are the various unhealthy coping mechanisms we use to pacify ourselves. The usage of these unhealthy coping mechanisms in times past have left me in worse situations. I have done my best to identify which coping strategies are healthy so that I can keep them in my tool shed and get rid of the others.
How do you deal with the storms of life? Do you allow the unsettling feeling to take charge and make decisions that could lead to making a bad situation worse? Do you rely on your faith muscles and seek other ways to handle storms?
I Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Blessings,
-d
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