My Safe Place

1 "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 This I declare about the Lord:He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;he is my God, and I trust him." Psalm 91:1,2 NLT

There is a thunderstorm going on outside, right now, as I write this. According to the weatherman, this is just the "appetizer." There is supposed to be more like this, and worse, in 3 or 4 hours from now. 

Have I mentioned before that I don't like Spring?  This is one of the reasons. I love rain, and I even like thunderstorms, within reason, but I draw the line at tornadoes.  I'm not a fan, and there is a reason.  

In 1996, my two younger children, along with my husband and I, weathered the F-3 tornado that did major damage to hundreds of homes in our area. My oldest was away at college at the time, an hour away, and had to hear about it on the news. We lived in a mobile home back then.  It was a good one, anchored to the ground with a brick foundation, but it was still a mobile home.

We didn't have a whole lot of warning, being out in the country with no sirens at that time. When the power went off, we turned on the battery-powered radio to listen to what the local weather station was saying. About that time, a friend who lived about 20 minutes southwest of us called to say there was a tornado on the ground, headed our way.  

We had nowhere to go. We grabbed quilts, turned the couch over, and got under it. And we prayed. We prayed a lot that night. We could tell when the funnel was over us, because of the pressure drop. My ears popped and it was hard to breathe. It was a terrifying experience, one I'll never forget. But God brought us through it. My daughter, who was 17 at the time, said later that as she was praying she saw God's hand over our house, holding it down. 

The next morning when it was light, we went outside to survey the damage. The neighbor next door and the one across the road both had substantial damage to their houses, their non-mobile homes--one had a whole room gone, the other had about half of their house left. Our huge oak tree was lying in the yard, and had missed landing on our house by just a few feet. Our storage building was gone. The tree by the road was gone. The yard was full of shingles of all colors, along with lots of paper and other debris from the areas southwest of us. 

Our house--our mobile home--beat the odds and was still standing.  It had no damage other than a few shingles gone from along the edge of the roof. The four of us were completely unharmed.

Coincidence? Luck? I hardly think so. It was GOD! Our God watched over us, just as He said he would if we would run to Him:

"He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection." Psalm 91:4

Ever since that night I have not liked storm season. I am not fearful, because I know what the Lord did for me before. I know He will protect me again. I just have a healthy respect for tornadoes. I don't laugh in the face of danger, tempting God to take care of me. He gave me common sense, and I use it. I go to my safe place; either my closet in the center of the house, or the tornado shelter at the school, depending on how bad it is and how much time I have.

And I PRAY. I have been known to speak to the storm, as Jesus did when the storm came up when He was asleep in the boat with His disciples. I have seen storms break up before they get to our area, or turn and go north or south of us. 

Take heart. Yes, there will probably be some storms this afternoon, and many other times.  Run to your safe place, but do not fear. "The shadow of the Almighty" is the safest place of all.  That's where you'll find me.

"From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed.
Lead me to the towering rock of safety for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me.
4 Let me live forever in your sanctuary, safe beneath the shelter of your wings!" Psalm 61:2-4 NLT