A Tempest
Steven and I were spending the night at a campground in Fort Worth when at 4am, we were jolted awake by phone weather alerts - a tornado warning.
Half asleep and fairly disoriented, we began discussing what to do…but then the Fort Worth warning sirens began blaring and we knew we were in trouble.
Steven threw a pair of shoes my way, put Dune on a leash, and we ran through the driving rain and lightning to the campground’s concrete shower building where we crowded in with 150 other people and their dogs.
It was mayhem at first: people rushing in, children crying, all the while the wind and rain roaring each time the door flew open to let another bewildered person in.
I was reminded that the power of our God is prominently displayed in the might of a storm; we were witness to it firsthand.
This is our God - the One who commands the torrents of rain, staggering electricity flashing in the skies, powerful winds roaring and twisting.
When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar;
he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain
and brings out the wind from his storehouses.
Jeremiah 10:13 NIV
A display of the awesome power only He holds.
A power held close in the journey to the cross.
As Palm Sunday approaches, we read again the story of our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem…
And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
Luke 19:35-40 ESV
For a moment, the people thought they understood Jesus’ intention. Our King Jesus riding in the world’s version of triumph; a clamor of people who wanted Jesus to be the kind of king the world reveres. However, this was not His destination.
It would only be a few short days before events would unfold so devastatingly that the very stones would cry out.
In the days ahead, we will remember how the tide of human opinion turned against our Savior. We will deeply and sorrowfully contemplate how He was beaten and tortured and nailed to a common criminal’s cross.
And then, with His final human breath, His own creation would quake and split open at the cataclysmic injustice and profound sacrifice of its perfect Creator.
God’s plan would march on; this would not be the end of our Savior’s journey.
For only our power-wielding God can command the attention of all creation when “it is finished.”
Only our God has the authority to accept the sacrifice of one for the sins of all.
Only our awesome, thunder-erupting, lightning-bolt-igniting, wind-swirling God conquers the finality of death.
Make no mistake. Our Lord loves us with tempest force affection. His love is unequivocally mighty and absolutely saving.
Stand in awe of Him amid the shouts of hosanna and the waving of palm branches.
Fall before Him as His beloved in the shadow of His devastating cross.
Deliverance presses on!
The Creator and His creation will not be silent.
Today is a GOOD day,
Natalie