Storms Blow in that our Prayers May Go Up

As Senator McCain and Governor Palin are to be nominated at the Republican convention (and I assume they still will be), the eyes of the nation are on a storm--not a political storm but a real one. As of this writing, Hurricane Gustav is just beginning to hurl itself against the already battered and worn Gulf Coast, threatening the rebuilding efforts that have gone on now for three years since Katrina.

And so we all pause to pray. We pray for God’s protection for the courageous first responders who remain after 1.9 million people were heroically evacuated. And we pray for the over 10,000 souls who did not go and remain in New Orleans, plus those scattered along the Mississippi coast. We pray for those dislodged from their homes. And we pray for our nation.

Storms--real one, metaphoric ones, personal ones, national ones--drive us to prayer and to God like nothing else. But thus is has always been. We remember that storms were common to the disciples of Jesus as we read:

"And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep” (Matt. 8:24, ESV).

“And they went and woke him, saying, Master, Master, we are perishing!’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm” (Luke 8:24).

And as Christ calmed the storm on that day, so St. Paul, when he was being taken by government officials to Rome, encountered a storm:

“And when the ship was caught and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along” (Acts 27:15).

But an angel visited Paul and he was divinely warned that they must run aground. And thus Paul would tell the seamen:

“Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, 'Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved’” (Acts 27:31).

Salvation for the frightened sailor-disciples was in the ship beside them, albeit sleeping in the storm. One learns that God is there. His power is available even in the times when He seems asleep. He is not. He is there. But for us the best place to be is beside Him in prayer. We must remember, as Paul instructed the sailors of his vessel, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.”

This is a time for ministers of the gospel to turn the hearts of their people to God. It is a time for us to be in the ship. So we look not to FEMA or to the National Guard alone. These are gifts of God for the common good of man and we thank God for them and thank those who so labor for the good of mankind. But we must seek Jesus in this storm. And we must say to the nation,