I'll Praise You In This Storm

There is a popular Christian Music Group that calls themselves "Casting Crowns." My friend Greg Wilson introduced their music to me about eighteen months ago. They probably have a number of good songs, but the one that has spoken to me recently is entitled "I'll Praise You In This Storm." There are several good verses, but the chorus really spoke to me, and it goes like this:


I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm.

There are lots of storms. We are about to come out of one, with the closing of the sale of our house in Grove. As I thought about the details of our closing, I had to stop and think...did I praise Him in that storm? Short answer...no. I may have said the right things, but praise him? Not so much...Susie is still looking for a job as a teacher in Oklahoma. Is she praising Him in that storm? You'll have to ask her.

A friend once told me that every one of us is either in the midst of a storm, or just about to go into one, or just recently out of one. What is your storm? Damaged friendships? If you are my friend, and you probably are if you are reading this, let me apologize now for the next time, or the last time, that I say something stupid. I value your friendship.

A troubled marriage? Let me tell you that I think I know what Jesus was speaking of when He said "In this world you will have trouble(s)." Marriage is hard, hard work. I used to think it would get easier after Susie and I had been married for a time. The trouble is, the longer we're married, the better she knows me. Trust me, that doesn't make it easier.

Are you in financial trouble? Let me tell you, based upon personal experience on both sides...people want to help you. Ask for help. Look for chances to help, too.

I recently went to a wedding reception for a young friend of our girls. She and her new husband were as happy as two people could be. Her husband even wrote a song in honor of their wedding. (My friends and I agreed that he was a much better person than we are, and that is just a fact.) They are happy...but you know what? A day will come, and may already have, when they will argue, even fight. Welcome to the storm, my young friends. Can you praise Him through it?

Living the Christian life is confusing, I think. The bible tells us that "In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28) God works for our good. I believe that all the time, but I only really understand it some of the time. Paul tells us in Philippians that "Our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus...he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross."

If God worked for anybody's good, surely it was Jesus Christ, who "became obedient unto death, even death on a cross." If that's what my good looks like, I think I want a second opinion. Maybe death was Jesus' storm. Maybe it was life. Did Jesus praise God through his storm? I think he did, especially when he asked God to forgive his enemies.

What's your storm? I don't know. I know we took a real hit on our house, but the hit will end, probably next Monday...or Tuesday. That storm is over. What's your storm? I don't know, but a mother and father buried their daughter today. Can they praise Him? I don't know, but I hope so. What's your storm? If you're not in one...look out, it's coming. They frightening thought is there is another storm on the horizon for me. Will I praise Him through it? I don't know, but I'll try.

The chorus says "For You are who You are, no matter where I am." What a humbling, and comforting thought.

My friend Terry buried his Dad this week. His dad had been ill for a while. Terry is in a storm, and I know he would appreciate your prayers. When we spoke, I told him that I would pray for him, and he should pray for me. He told me "that's a deal." I'll make the same deal with you.

I'll pray for you, and you pray for me. That's a deal.