Last March my spiritual mom early on a Sunday morning shared on Facebook a post by Ralph Marston (he writes nice little inspirational posts) about opportunity. He wrote (I’ve shortened it) “Opportunity is not something you wait for, or search for, or find. Opportunity is something you embrace and activate with your actions. …It is a starting point, and going forward from that starting point requires work.” Nice thought, nice words and I didn’t think a whole lot about it. Then later that morning at church our youth pastor gave the message, and he said something that hit me like a ton of bricks being dropped on me… “What if our greatest obstacles became our greatest opportunities?” He then talked about how we’re so quick to ask God to MOVE the mountain in front of us out of the way, when all along it’s His desire that we climb and conquer that mountain, in order to be equipped to help others climb their mountains.

God was speaking to me loud and clear. I was for the most part past the storm in my life (maybe a few leaves still fluttering in the air) but there was that lingering “why?” What’s my purpose? What was the reason? Was there even a reason? And yes, there was and it made it ALL of my life make sense. And that presented the opportunity, and that’s when the work began for me to help others who had been through a similar storm.

A couple of friends of mine are currently encountering their own storms. Major storms affecting their entire family. Right now they can’t even begin to think about what opportunity God may have for them once the storm has passed, they’re just praying that the storm WILL pass. It will for them, maybe soon, maybe later, but it will pass because they are awesome children of God. One day the skies will clear, the sky will be blue and nothing but a few fluffy clouds will be visible.

You might be in the middle of a major storm in your life right now. You’re looking for some peace, some blue skies and fluffy clouds of your own – they’re coming, I promise. But for reasons we don’t know right now, these are your mountains, your mountains to be climbed and conquered. Romans 8:37-39 says “…in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Take a moment to thank God for what He has awaiting you (and yes, I KNOW it’s easy for me to SAY safely here at my desk while violent winds are whipping all around you and your families.) This is when that SOB Satan will take every chance to destroy your hope and faith. But God. Is. Faithful. Cling to Him and hang on tight, for as long as it takes because God won’t get tired of holding you. Isaiah 40:28 “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.” He puts up with a LOT from ALL His children and will always be there for us. You are loved in Heaven and here on Earth and know that you’re covered in prayer, if by no one else – by me and many others reading this. I may not know who you are, but our Lord does – and I’m praying for YOU.

Here’s an addendum: I posted the above about 30 minutes ago and I felt like God wanted my Facebook friends, ANY of my Facebook friends who are thinking “oh, how nice of Laurie to be thinking of me” to know that no, I’m not talking about them.  Well, I probably am, but the couple of friends I mentioned aren’t even Facebook friends of mine.  That’s our Lord speaking to you about what’s going on in your life and what He has in store for you.  I may not know about your storm – but I know about storms.  Cling to God and when the storm has passed, ASK Him what He has for you.  ASK what you can do for others going through a similar storm – regardless of the outcome of your own.  We serve an amazing God an He can be magnified in both our personal joy and our personal sadness.  Trust me, He can.  And YES, that’s a BIG step of faith.