WMA: God is in the Storm

By Susie Edgar

On April 29, 2024, the tornado sirens sounded in our little town of Sulphur, Okla. Here in Oklahoma, we have so many tornadoes we think, “It’s not going to hit here,” so we go on about our business. But I felt a little uneasy that night as the wind began to blow harder than any normal storm, and the rain wouldn’t stop. It came in sheets, and I noticed there was no hail. That was unusual. I mentioned to my husband that maybe we needed to go to the school shelter, which was newly constructed and only two blocks away. We expected to be back home in an hour at the most. You know, like we had always done.

As the rain began to be too heavy to see through, I thought, “What should I take to the shelter? What could I not replace if my house blew away?” I got my purse, password book, medicine, pillow, sleeping bag, my small safe with important papers and snacks. It just went on and on. My bag had become so large I couldn’t pick it up. I sat on the couch and prayed, “Lord, you know I can’t take all this. Would you just protect our home in this storm?” A very soft reply came: “Yes, I will.”

At that moment, I thought of the elderly lady next door. We can’t leave her here. I knocked on her door and invited her to come along. Her reply was, “Just go without me. It will take too long for me to get ready.” I offered to help. She couldn’t find her purse and wouldn’t leave without it. I finally said in my frustration, “Let’s pray.” I put my arm on her shoulder and said, “Lord, if we can’t find Sue’s purse, would you keep it safe for her?” As she walked toward the door, her purse was sitting right in her path. “Thank you, Lord,” I said.

Do you know how hard it is to get an 83-year-old elderly lady in a pickup in a 70-mile-per-hour wind? I need to take a course on elder care since I am getting close to being one.

We did get to the shelter, and she was a little “rumpled,” as my grandmother used to say, but we were safe. Three and a half hours later, word came that the tornado had hit downtown in the east part of the city. Just two blocks from where our shelter was. When they gave the all-clear, we tried to go back home, but everything was flooded, and electricity was off in much of the town. The flooding was so bad that we couldn’t get the short distance back to our home. We drove to the north, trying to find a crossing, and finally got high enough that we could cross. As we rounded the corner to our home, all the lights were on, and it was safe, with not even a branch touched on our big pecan tree in the front yard.

Then, it all came back to me. I had asked the Lord to protect our home. He had answered. I thought, “He is able to do above and beyond.” We just sat there in the pickup in front of our house and had a praise meeting, thanking the Lord for His blessing. The elderly lady from next door was crying in the back seat and said, "Thank you, Lord, for keeping us safe.” It was the sweetest prayer.

God was in the storm.

The next morning, I was called to feed breakfast to the National Guard that Governor Stitt had sent to the disaster. We worked 10 hours a day for 2 weeks, feeding the people and praying with them. Of all that we did in those two weeks, the prayers were more appreciated than anything. People were desperate for help. Many of them had nothing, and what little they had was taken the night of the storm.

My sister-in-law was in one of the buildings downtown that was hit the hardest. We searched for her all night and found her the next morning. She was gone. We were heartbroken. My heart and mind would not let me believe it. I first thought of my niece, only 21 years old, just beginning her life. My sister-in-law’s funeral was two days later. Someone had anonymously paid for it all. God was in the storm. Not only that, but her daughter had just finished her degree at Oklahoma State University and was hoping to start law school, but you can’t work the first year of law school, and she couldn’t afford not to work and go to school. Then, her mother’s employer called her and told her they would pay for her to attend law school. God was in the storm. What a blessing. We all cried and thanked Him for his unwavering love for his children.

You may have a storm in your life right now, but God is in the storm. Jesus feels your pain as He sits at God’s right hand and intercedes for you. Never doubt that. He holds out His arms of unlimited power. All He wants is for you to ask for His help. We can do that by prayer.

Don’t let the devil persuade you to neglect prayer. It is your access to touching the heart of your God. Do not believe what your heart says during times like this. Believe your God and every word that proceeds out of His mouth. It will put things into perspective. Be faithful to a God who can supply every need. Faithfulness is no small thing to have.

• Scripture — Eph. 3:20; Matt. 4:4; Isa. 40:28; 41:10

Let your legacy be faithfulness to your God. A song we sing in our church says a lot about your Legacy — “What Will I Leave Behind” by Sherrill Brown. The lyrics say, “After I leave for worlds unknown, Over the borderline: Never again on earth to roam, what will I leave behind? Will I be missed by those I love, or have I been unkind? Have I been true to God above, what will I leave behind? This is my prayer, O Lord, today, let me be wholly Thine; When I am called from earth away, let Heaven then be mine. Leave behind, yes, leave behind, what will I leave behind? After I leave for worlds unknown, what will I leave behind?”