Be Still

My little area of Texas has received a lot of heavy rainfall over the past few days. Yesterday was especially scary. From the moment I woke up until late afternoon, it felt like the rain would never stop. It hasn’t even been a year since Hurricane Harvey came through and brought catastrophic flooding to our area. Some people are just now getting back into their homes, and yesterday, those same people were getting water in their houses again. I found myself sitting at home with a heavy heart and praying constantly that the rain would stop. I prayed that God would still the storm and protect the community and people I love so much. At times, I would think, “God, why are You letting this happen again? We can’t do this again so soon. Some people might completely lose hope.”

Thankfully, the rain subsided and the water drained. For the most part, there was minimal damage and we did not experience another Hurricane Harvey this week. Still, my thoughts and feelings during the rain reminded me of a similar experience I have had. Two years ago right now, I was in the middle of an intense battle with panic and anxiety disorder. It was consuming, debilitating, and left me feeling hopeless and confused most of the time. Just like yesterday when I felt like the rain was never going to stop, two years ago I was convinced that I was never going to get better or have a normal life again. I think we have all found ourselves in this place at some point. Storms, whether they be literal or figurative, come into our lives unexpectedly and totally take away our sense of security and hope. Even as Christians, we wonder where God is and why He is allowing this to happen. It just doesn’t make sense.

One day while I was in the midst of the storms of anxiety and depression, God taught me a beautiful lesson through my precious puppy I had at the time, Mabry. Mabry was a small, energetic, stubborn, loving, absolutely beautiful dog who did NOT like baths. It was never a pleasant experience for either of us, but that day, I decided to give her a bath. As she sat in the water, I noticed a clump of dirt was sticking to her hair. I gently began to pull it out and she just as quickly jerked away and started whimpering. I can clearly remember myself gently pulling her back to me and saying, “It’s okay. I know it hurts. Just be still,” and holding her until I got the dirt out. Immediately, it’s like I could picture God looking down from heaven on my suffering and saying to me, “It’s okay. I know it hurts. Just be still.” 

This lesson changed everything for me. I wasn’t at all trying to hurt Mabry; I was just trying to clean her and get the dirt out of her hair. Unfortunately, it required her to feel some pain. But in the end, she was clean. In the same way, God doesn’t delight in causing us pain. However, He loves us so much that He is going to do whatever it takes to cleanse us and make us who He has called us to be. Sometimes, pain is necessary. He doesn’t ask us to ignore it or try to fake our way through it; He stays right there with us. He sees and knows our struggle and He stays right there with us. All we need to do is be still.

I don’t know what kind of storm you are in or what pain you are experiencing, but please do not lose hope. Know that God has not abandoned you and He is not cruel. He is right there with you and He is using this pain to do something incredible in and through you, bringing you to places you may never get to if you don’t go through the suffering. Be still and let Him do His work. The pain won’t last forever and He will hold you close through it all.

Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”