Storms are inevitable

Written by Janet Denison
Published on January 28, 2022

The storms are inevitable. 

Everyone experiences times in their lives that are filled with anxious thoughts and difficult choices. And raising children comes with its own set of struggles and storms. Jesus tells us in his word that in this world, we will experience troubles (John 16:33), but somehow the tough times still surprise us and catch us off guard. 

We will face storms, just like the disciples did one night on the Sea of Galilee. When their boat was rocked, they were so fearful they woke Jesus who was sleeping soundly. Do you remember what happened next? Jesus stood and spoke to the storm saying: 

“‘Peace! Be still.’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm” (Mark 4:39 ESV). 

How does Jesus calm our storms? 

How can we face the storms of life and help our children navigate their own struggles? How can we teach our children that in every circumstance they can pray for the peace that only Jesus offers? 

We point them to the truth of Scripture.   

The word of God is the greatest tool for bringing his peace and presence into our daily circumstances. God doesn’t want us to live our lives through a lens of worry or fear. Although living with “no worries” isn’t possible, it is possible to lay them down at the feet of the One who is able to calm the storms. And it is possible to teach our children to do that, too. 

A Great Calm provides short devotionals based on Scripture that will strengthen our lives for the storms. When our worries come, we can replace those thoughts with the truth of God’s words found in Scripture.  

Following is an excerpt from my book, which I hope you will consider ordering. Our world will always be filled with noise and chaos, good times and tough times. But, God can provide the calm we need for our chaos. He wants to. That’s why he made sure we could open a Bible and hear him speak. I hope this book will help God’s word speak to you and provide his great calm to you any time it’s needed.  

The best time to prepare for the difficult times of life is now.  

One day, God will “wipe every tear from our eyes.” Until then, our lives will have a few unavoidable storms.  

An excerpt from Janet’s book A Great Calm

God’s occasional time-outs 

If God has allowed your life to come to a standstill of some kind, ask him, “Why?” If we don’t understand God’s purpose for our time-out, we will likely miss his blessing. 

Isaiah wrote that those who wait for the Lord will have their strength renewed (Isaiah 40:31). Isaiah said we can soar high, with wings that enable our flight with almost no effort. We simply glide with the winds provided. Just as an eagle’s wings provide effortless flight, we will be able to run without growing weary. We will be able to walk through our lives without fainting and falling.  

When we aren’t willing to wait for the Lord to reveal his good purpose, we might find ourselves fighting the winds instead of soaring because of them. If we spend our time flapping our wings, pushing against our circumstances, we may not have the rest from our worries that God intends.  We may be anxious about many things instead of realizing we have a God who cares, as well as a God who controls. Could it be that God has blessed our busy lives with a time of waiting because he wants us to wait with him until his good purpose is revealed?  

The God of all creation wants to spend time with you. He wants you to know his plans even more than you want to know them. There is nothing more important or more time-sensitive than submitting to God’s time-out. We can flap around during our time-out, or we can soar peacefully above our problems. It’s not hard to know what God’s purpose would be; it’s just hard to choose it sometimes. When God hands us a time-out, he has a reason. We should wait, knowing that God has blessed us and called us to a time of effortless strength. He isn’t “slow to fulfill his promise” (2 Peter 3:9). God is just patient, waiting for us to catch up and catch on to the perfection of his plans.  

P R A Y E R  Forgive me, Father, for rushing ahead and resisting your plans. No wonder I am weary! Please, Father, help me wait at your feet, simply grateful for the chance to be there. I am glad for your presence, Lord. May I rest here until you lift me up. May I stay until I am ready to soar on those same winds I have fought against. In your strength, for your good purpose, I will wait for the chance to run again, and, next time, I will not grow weary.  

A Note from Janet: 

I have been a pastor’s wife and a Bible teacher for most of my life. It has been my privilege to walk with people and pray for them during their difficult times of life. I’ve also leaned on many of these passages when our own family faced tough times.   

I hope you will be blessed, strengthened, and encouraged by the words of this book. There are a lot of storms in life, and every family can learn to face them together. God’s help is available for whatever circumstances he allows in our lives because he plans to use them for our good, if we will be called to his good purpose (Romans 8:28). 

If you would like to order your copy, you can visit https://www.foundationswithjanet.org/calm


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Janet Denison

Janet Denison teaches others to live an authentic faith through her writing, speaking, and teaching ministry. She blogs weekly at Foundationswithjanet.org and often at ChristianParenting.org.

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