Encouragement

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As a new Christian, I struggled with trusting God. One day while reading the Bible I came across Matthew 6:26: “Behold the fowls of the air; for they sow not neither do they reap, nor gather into barns and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much better than them?”

For the first time, I saw myself in a new light and saw God in a different way. I looked at nature and realized that birds appear healthy: not too thin or fat, but perfect in shape and color. Yet, in this passage God was saying that I was better than them? Could this be true? Could I believe this? It helped me to trust in God to take care of me.

Another thing God did for me as a new Christian was to give me a love for His creation, especially for animals. I had raised two tropical birds for fourteen years that I was forced to give up due to traveling with my job. Soon after I started feeding squirrels and birds in my backyard. Twice daily I make sure they have fresh food and water. This has developed into a passion for me and I get much joy in watching the activity from the kitchen window. They are quite humorous at times.

Life on the Gulf Coast offers a beautiful backdrop for living. Centuries-old live Oak trees canopy streets where Antebellum homes lay nestled in the shadows. Pristine white sandy beaches have been drawing people for hundreds of years to this part of the country.

Hurricane season begins June 1 every year and runs through November. Like everyone else on the coast, I keep a close eye on the weather. September 15, 2004 was no exception. Hurricane Ivan, a category 4 storm was approaching our area with winds exceeding 130 miles per hour. The storm would come ashore overnight and so I busied myself preparing for what lay ahead. I began clearing lawn furniture and anything else that could become airborne. I saw dark grey clouds racing from east to west, like soldiers marching to war. No lightning, no thunder, no rain. An eerie silence, broken only by the wind picking up now and then rushing through the trees, stilled the afternoon.

Looking around the backyard I realized I would have to dismantle the birdfeeder and bath. I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen to the birds and squirrels? Would the birds simply fly away; would the squirrels hide in the trees? Did they even know what was going on? I removed other items first deciding to wait until the last minute on the feeder.

It was mid-afternoon by the time I finished. The winds came and went, building each time as the first bands of the storm moved through our area. The birds and squirrels continued to feed unabated. Eventually, as the sun went down I took the feeder apart quietly asking the Lord to take care of them.

Darkness crept in while I stood on the front porch. The winds howled invading the summer air. I noticed sparrows darting about nervously as if they sensed the impending danger, searching for a place to ride out the storm. Again, I asked the Lord to take care of the animals.

It wasn’t long before Ivan arrived. Rain poured in torrents and then subsided, only to begin again as it proclaimed it’s stubborn wrath on the Gulf Coast. With each passing hour the intensity increased. Like most people, I was in front of the television for any change or update. Nothing. Ivan continued moving directly toward us.

Around 10pm the lights flashed, once, twice and then blackness. It was at this point, no longer drowned by the sounds within the house that the full impact of the storm could be heard. The wind seemed to race across the top of the house and I thought about the way people describe tornadoes, like the sound of a freight train.

Time seemed to stand still as I moved about the house. Without air-conditioning the house warmed quickly and I knew it would be a long night. Occasionally, I heard things hit the house and reasoned it must be small limbs from the trees around.

Crash!

I heard the sound in the close distance and jumped. My heart beat rapidly and I raced to the window, but it was impossible at this point to make out anything. I could just see
the faint outline of the trees in the distant bending, blowing, struggling in the night storm.

A tree must have fallen.

I settled in as best I could. The wind was unnerving and I decided to sit on the floor near an inside wall. I brought a pillow, but figured I would not be sleeping much. I prayed, and talked to the Lord, often sounding like I was trying to convince myself that He would take care of me instead of just trusting Him. In those moments, in the height of the storm, alone, my faith was tested.

Periodically, I would hear a loud crash in the distance or something hitting the house that would make me spring to my feet to look outside. Several times I opened the door
to the carport and stepped outside. The wind seemed to come from all directions and the rain blew sideways beating against the house. Whoosh! A large gust, and I ran back inside the house. This went on for most of the night.

In the early morning hours the radio faded in and out and one of the last things I heard was that the storm had taken a slight jog to the East. Inside, I was elated, not for
my friends to the East, but because I knew that the storm would start easing from our area. This was around 4:00am.

I awoke around 6:30am lying on my back in the hallway. I didn’t remember going to sleep? It took me a moment to realize where I was. My back was hurting from laying on the hard floor. It was very quiet. “Thank God, it’s over.” I thought. I pulled myself up, battle-weary and stood to my feet. I felt like I had been beat up, groggy, unsteady. Slowly, I made my way through the house listening intently.

Grey morning light had begun filtering in revealing silhouettes of normal surroundings. I was anxious and admittedly fearful to see what damage my home sustained. I passed by the kitchen window and looked into the backyard. The wind was still blowing and I could see debris everywhere. Rain fell lightly but the worst of it seemed over. And then I saw it!

I took a deep breath and held it, in unbelief.

On the ground in the familiar spot were all the birds that I regularly fed! Pecking, picking, hunting at the ground looking for morsels of nourishment, almost as if nothing had ever happened? I couldn’t believe it! Where had they gone? How did they survive? It was such a terrible storm. In my heart I praised God! HE REALLY DOES TAKE CARE OF HIS OWN.

Suddenly, joy returned and peace moved through me! In that moment I knew that no matter what happened to my home, I would be okay.

That day, in the midst of the storm, my faith grew again and I remembered the special Bible verse. If our Heavenly Father cares so much for the birds of the air, can we not place our trust in Him for our own well-being? I realized that I had fallen short so many times and asked for forgiveness. I thanked God for this little lesson and started cleaning up.




Hai guise, this is Jon. I liek to hax teh intarwebs.

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