Last night was one of the scariest nights of my life. Yesterday morning, a huge storm ripped through my campus. After the skies cleared, I stepped out of my dorm to survey the damage. There were easily 30 massive trees down, with numerous smaller ones. Buildings were cut in half. The entire campus - and 16,000 other Rome residents - was without power - estimates are that we with continue to be without power until the weekend at least, due to the extent of the damage. But then the skies cleared, and the rest of the day was sunny. I thought the worst was over. I thought we were safe. Boy was I wrong.
Cue last night. Around 8:00, the storms came back with a vengeance. Probably the biggest storm that I've ever experienced in my entire life rocked my city. And not just my city - it stretched from Mississippi to New York. Over 140 tornadoes touched down, some more than once. Around 8:30, the RA's came through our dorms and told everyone we were evacuating. But by then, the storm was too bad, and we couldn't go outside. So the entire dorm was herded into the first floor hall. And there we sat. And sat. For hours we sat there and watched the continuous, monstrous bolts of lighting split the sky. We heard the thunder that seemed like it would break the building in half. Students looked up the increasingly-ominous Doppler forecasts on their smartphones and shared them with everyone. I found out that a family very dear to us had lost their home, and pretty much everything in it. All while I sat in a hallway, helpless.
When they evacuated us, I had stuffed some important things into a backpack and brought it with me. One of those things was my Bible. I was so agitated I couldn't even stand still, so I pulled out my Bible to Psalms and started reading. When I got to Psalms 4, I started crying. I couldn't believe what I was reading. It was as if David had written that Psalm specifically for me, knowing that I would need it last night. "Answer me when I call to You, my God...give me relief from my distress...hear my prayer...trust in the LORD...In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety."
Cue last night. Around 8:00, the storms came back with a vengeance. Probably the biggest storm that I've ever experienced in my entire life rocked my city. And not just my city - it stretched from Mississippi to New York. Over 140 tornadoes touched down, some more than once. Around 8:30, the RA's came through our dorms and told everyone we were evacuating. But by then, the storm was too bad, and we couldn't go outside. So the entire dorm was herded into the first floor hall. And there we sat. And sat. For hours we sat there and watched the continuous, monstrous bolts of lighting split the sky. We heard the thunder that seemed like it would break the building in half. Students looked up the increasingly-ominous Doppler forecasts on their smartphones and shared them with everyone. I found out that a family very dear to us had lost their home, and pretty much everything in it. All while I sat in a hallway, helpless.
When they evacuated us, I had stuffed some important things into a backpack and brought it with me. One of those things was my Bible. I was so agitated I couldn't even stand still, so I pulled out my Bible to Psalms and started reading. When I got to Psalms 4, I started crying. I couldn't believe what I was reading. It was as if David had written that Psalm specifically for me, knowing that I would need it last night. "Answer me when I call to You, my God...give me relief from my distress...hear my prayer...trust in the LORD...In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety."
The last line of that Psalm was the real doozie. I tell you what, I most certainly did not feel safe last night. But the LORD my God makes me dwell in safety. He will take care of me. Even now, the though brings tears to my eyes. I tell you what, I haven't prayed as hard as I did last night in a very long time. And when my words dried up, I read the Bible. And when my eyes blurred, I sang. As frightening as last night was, God was very much with me.
After I found out about our friends who had lost everything, the middle part of the chapter resonated that much more with me. It says that "Many, LORD, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?” Let the light of your face shine on us. Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound." I know that this is much easier to say when I am not the one who has lost my home, but just reading about how God will prosper those who love Him was comforting. The Psalmist does not ask for their grain and new wine to abound...unless a tornado flattens their house, and in that case they're just out of luck. He simply asks God to prosper them, period. God is bigger than a tornado. He calmed the storm and walked on water. As myself, my friends and my family begin to pick up the pieces of our lives, that sure is a comforting thought.
Psalm 4
Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer......
Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer......
Offer the sacrifices of the righteous and trust in the LORD.
Many, LORD, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?”
Let the light of your face shine on us.
Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound.
Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound.
In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me dwell in safety.
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