Today I was reminded of a seemingly insignificant moment almost 20 years ago that turned out to be God’s way of gently preparing me for difficult times ahead. I intended on writing about the Feasts of the Lord and their prophetic significance but today, after having this particular memory resurface, I decided to tell you a little more about my own journey because really, even though our blog is about what we see happening in the world, it’s more important to know there is a place to find refuge from the coming storms, and that place is found in the Lord.

As I recall, somehow I knew instinctively that my Heavenly Father was speaking to me as I looked out the window one rainy afternoon and saw a little bird in a tree, sheltered by leaves as the wind blew and the rain battered down. Seeing him reminded me of one of my favorite verses at the time, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Psalm 91:1). I loved that verse because it spoke of security in God, and I knew that He loved and cared for me so much more than He cared for that little bird. The Bible teaches that the very hairs of our head are numbered, and not a bird falls from the sky without Him knowing it (Matthew 10:29-30). I was reminded that this great big God who created and sustains the entire universe also knew and cared about every detail of my life! The Psalm goes on to say in the next verse, “I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’”

Even though I didn’t know it at the time, a major storm was looming on the horizon of my personal life, which would be followed by even more storms, and I would sure need a place of refuge. One benefit of growing older is the perspective you have in looking back on your life. Reading this Psalm today stirred up the memory of that gentle foreboding — God reminding me that I needed to stick close to Him so He could shelter me from the coming storms. I am thankful to say that He has been true to his Word. He has brought me through many storms, even in spite of the fact that I didn’t always stick close to Him. There were times of panic, distrust, sheer exhaustion, exasperation, doubt, fear, anger, and uncertainty–all seriously testing my faith. Another way to put it is that there was a lot of pain and suffering that I was completely unprepared for.

I have learned the hard way that there is a purpose in suffering. None of us like the thought of suffering, and I’m sure none of us would choose to suffer if given the option to avoid it. But life has a way of taking unexpected turns. I’ve experienced it, and I’ve known many others who have experienced it. And the thing is, as a Christian, who am I to think I should be immune from suffering? I’ve found that it is in the suffering that I’ve come to know God in a deeper, more tangible way than I would have otherwise, because when everything was stripped away, all I had left was Him. I discovered that He is the treasure. “And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness — secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name” (Isaiah 45:3 NLT).

I learned firsthand that He isn’t just a sentimental thought or a belief system or a theory — He is real and He is alive and He desires to make himself known. The Bible says “the Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). How true! I also learned that He is “the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)

Unfortunately, at some point we all have to suffer in this life. No one is exempt — Jesus suffered too, for our sakes, and said as His followers we would suffer as well. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) He has indeed overcome the world and He is coming again one day to make all things right. For now, I will walk by faith until I see that day. The apostle Paul offers further encouragement:

Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

Actually, I could fill up a whole page with some of my favorite passages from the Bible that have sustained me during tough times. And those passages are His living Word — where I find Jesus himself! It’s a mystery, but John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” God’s Word is alive — I’ve believed it, trusted it, experienced it, and I know I can continue to rely on it to sustain me no matter what the future holds.

It seems like quite a stretch to go from remembering a little bird sheltered from the storm in a tree outside my window to thinking of the coming storms we’ve been writing about which we believe are just over the horizon. But for me, it’s a great reminder of the lessons I’ve learned the hard way — suffering through personal storms — that the God of the Bible is who He says He is and that I can trust Him completely. If you don’t already, you can also have the full assurance that He provides shelter from the storms when we draw near to Him. I would encourage you to read Psalm 91 in its entirety. It ends with these words:

Holding fast,

Lisa

…We who have fled for refuge … have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this [hope] as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf…. (Hebrews 6:18-20)

^{Photography by Bill Williams}