Intervention

There is a passage in Isaiah 41 that provides a reminder about God's presence with His people.  We can 
read these words:
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its farthest regions, And said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'

It's been said that the phrase, "fear not," is found 365 times in the Bible - that means that there is a reminder for each day of the year. You could also interpret that to mean that God is consistently with us and wants us to walk in faith, and in what 2 Timothy 1 says: we do not have a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.  Are we demonstrating soundness of mind?  Do we walk as if we believe that God is always with us?  We have the capability to walk in triumph over the force of fear.

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The passage of Scripture in Matthew 28 that contains what is known as the Great Commission says this:
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

The phenomenon of a hurricane or even a tropical storm affecting the area in which you live can bring some unexpected challenges, and we know that even in the adversity of disaster, there is the opportunity for God to be glorified.

Even recently, in the midst of Hurricane Sally, a slow-moving Category 2 storm that actually came ashore in Alabama along the Gulf Coast, there have been, and I am confident will be, stories of God's intervention.

Take, for instance, the story of an Alabama pastor who had moved to Orange Beach two years ago, according to a story from ABC33/40, which reported on Brad Doss and his family, who experienced destruction at their condo.  The online story relates that the pastor said, “Every time the wind would gust, we thought okay that’s it. The roof is coming off..."  The station's report goes on to say:

The destruction and loss of power means a hot shower, food, and drinking water have been hard to come by.

The Doss family have been able to grill some of their meals.

“We haven’t really eaten that much in 2 or 3 days and so we sat down to that meal last night. We sat down at the picnic tables with a couple of candles lit,” said Doss.

But, they continue to rely on God, the pastor says: “The one thing about the pandemic and the one thing about this hurricane is that it did not take God by surprise and he is control..." and the report states, "Doss said the hurricane won't keep them from their work of ministering to the community."

On the Fish River near the coast, John Rabur experienced the storm firsthand, according to WALA Television.  The report online states:

“It was the next morning when the surge from the river really started to come up and in about five hours, it came up five feet and that’s when we started to have some concerns about what was happening,” said Rabur.

Rabur thought Hurricane Sally had done its worst, but the storm wasn’t done yet. Preparation time was over. Prayer would be his next line of defense.

Rabur said, “As I was sitting there, I was like, well the Lord was able to part the Red Sea, so I took my Bible put it at the bottom, base of my door. Figured He could stop the Red Sea, if he chose to and He blessed us.”  The story relates that even though water came over the top of his above ground pool, "Not a drop entered in" to his home. Rabur is quoted as saying, “So we were just completely grateful and blessed thank you Jesus for that day..."

Billy Graham Rapid Response Team chaplains are on the ground in Southern Alabama, having recently been deployed to Louisiana to minister to victims of Hurricane Laura.  A story on the BillyGraham.org website tells the story of two men in Lake Charles, Louisiana who survived the storm.

Dan Schaad owns a cafe and bed-and-breakfast in Lake Charles, and he, along with employee Mike Bullock decided to ride out the storm. The story relates:

With many locals now returning from evacuations, Schaad explained he decided to ride out the storm because “I remember leaving last time [during Hurricane Rita and being] anxious to get back. Some of my employees stayed, and I wanted to be there for them.”

Sure enough, the men have helped clear some of the streets so emergency vehicles could get by and served the cafe’s food to emergency personnel.

Bullock, who accepted the Lord in prison when he was a teenager, is quoted in the article, which states:

“I just said, ‘Your will be done [to God],'” Bullock shared, adding that’s what he told his daughter ahead of the storm.

“My faith takes all fear of dying away from me. I don’t really worry about what’s happening in the world as long as me and Christ have things straight. That’s all that matters,” Bullock said.

The Billy Graham team set up at First Baptist Church across the street.  The church received extensive damage, but the article states:

Chunks of cement blocks had tumbled down the front stairs of the church after its giant stained glass windows blew out, letting rain pelt its interior. Amazingly, a concrete depiction of a Bible remained intact, bearing these Scriptures:

“Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” —Matthew 11:28

“Go ye, … and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.” —Matthew 28:19

These stories remind us of how we can turn to God's presence and sustaining power, even when we are seemingly helpless.  Brad Doss was reminded of God's control even when things seem out of control, John Rabur relied on prayer and the assurance of God's truth when he faced danger, and Mike Bullock related how he was not afraid of death because of his eternal life in Christ.  Pastor Doss experienced the loss of a home, Mr. Rabur did not.  But, in all things, God is to be praised.  People die in storms and other natural disasters, others survive.  We can't understand it all, yet we can continue to  be confident in the Lord and allow Him to do His work in our hearts.

We do know that God is sovereign, and He works according to His purposes.  We know that He sometimes works in ways that we do not understand, and that death and destruction will invade our lives. So, we praise Him in the rescue, certainly, and we even praise Him when we face the struggles and losses of life.  Bullock's wife had died seven years ago, but God used that loss to draw Mike closer to Himself.  So, even though all doesn't work out like we think it should, and we will experience human suffering, we can continue to draw close to God and know more of His peace and love, realizing he comforts us in our loss.