Praise You In This Storm

This week's Sunday-ish hymn is not actually a hymn. It's a song by a Christian group named Casting Crowns and it really hits home for me right now.

Everybody has times when it seems everything is falling apart. I'm going through that right now.

Pain in both arms from carpal tunnel, pain from fibromyalgia, getting turned down - however nicely - for a new job, realizing that my new plans for my life won't work out, financial difficulties, complete & utter exhaustion... my life really sucks right now.

But, in all this, I have a choice. I can sit here & whine & cry about it, wish that things were different, complain to God that He should fix everything, after all I am His child, He has control of everything, why don't You come down here & make it all better... yada yada yada... Or I can say "Yeah, I'm having a tough time right now, but God is right here with me. I can & will get through this, with His help".

You see, being a Christian doesn't automatically make everything hunky-dory. If anything, it makes life more difficult. Stepping up to the line with God makes a statement to the other side, Satan, that I am his enemy. He can & will use anything & everything in his arsenal to stop me in my tracks, to negate any positive impact that I could possibly have for Christ. Physical problems, money problems, relationship problems, these are all tools he uses to get to us. The good news is that he has already been defeated. He lost the war, but he keeps fighting little battles in our everyday lives. The sad part is that many buy into his lies and those are the battles that he wins. You hear about his victories every time a prominent Christian screws up & their sins get plastered all over the headlines.

I choose to trust & praise Him no matter what is going on my life. When I do that, Satan loses yet another little battle.

I realize I have it a lot better than many others out there. My uncle has MS, his wife has diabetes, 2 families in our church each lost a young son this past spring, a pregnant 14-year-old girl was murdered recently in Wichita...

I don't know about the girl's family, but my aunt & uncle praise God in the midst of their diseases & the families of those boys have handled their passing with incredible grace that can only come from God. They have chosen to praise Him in their storms.

Psalm 121:1-4
A song of ascents.
I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.


Praise You in this Storm - click the link, Music & then the Lifesong CD to listen.

I was sure by now
God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
And stepped in and saved the day
Once again, I say Amen, and it is still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear you whisper through the rain
I'm with you
As your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise you in this storm
And I will lift my hands
You are who you are
No matter where I am
And 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

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find you

I lift my eyes into the hills
Where does my help come from
My help comes from the Lord
The maker of heaven and earth

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lyrics by Mark Hall from the Casting Crowns website
Verses from BibleGateway
Week 5 - Come Thou Fount
Week 4 - The Old Rugged Cross
Week 3 - Fairest Lord Jesus
Week 2 - Be Thou My Vision
Week 1 - A Mighty Fortress Is Our God