“He fills his hands with lightning
and commands it to strike its mark.”
Job 36:32 NIV
My fear
has become a monument in the form of an overstuffed notebook. Article
after article about lighting facts, hoarded as if in knowing, I will be safer.
When a bolt of lightning, traveling through a clear, blue sky killed my dad, my
fear spiraled out of control. I pulled my kids off soccer fields, refused to
use the electric appliances, or take a shower during a storm. Talking on the
phone is forbidden.
As a child, my dad held me in his lap, explaining
what a beautiful display lightning gives of the power of God. Lightning
striking two of my parents’ homes erased any fascination he managed to
encourage. Following his death, fear and faith collided, and lightning became a
terrible thing rather than a display of God’s power.
Living on the side of a mountain at 7200 feet puts
us in danger of lightning strikes to our home and forest fires. The beautiful
view drew us, and we never considered the storms.
An in-depth study of scripture convinced me that
only God controls the lightning, but I still cannot see its beauty. I control
nothing beyond my own reactions, but God’s sovereignty rules over all. I can
accept that God took my father to heaven via a lightning bolt, but I don’t take
chances by being out in a storm.
I have heard it said that God’s man, at the center
of God’s will, is immortal until God is finished with him. Trusting an all-powerful
God can free me from concern for self. Stepping out of my comfort zone can grow
and mature my faith. Sensible precautions aren’t wrong. It is wrong to cower in
fear over something only God controls.
John says perfect love casts out fear, so my fear
cripples my faith. Stormy times in life cause me to depend on God in new ways,
and lightning storms should do the same. I must submit my fear to God and leave
it there. I must trust God completely, no matter my circumstances.
Fear weakens; faith strengthens. Just as the
lightning comes from His fingers, so do the events of our lives. When I refuse
to give in to fear, God can show me His power.
© Copyright Norma
Gail Thurston Holtman, July 7, 2013 & August 17, 2017
About the author:
Norma
Gail is the author of the contemporary Christian romance, Land of My Dreams, winner of the 2016 Bookvana Religious Fiction
Award. A women’s Bible study leader for over 21 years, her devotionals and
poetry have appeared at ChristianDevotions.us, the Stitches Thru Time blog, and
in “The Secret Place.” She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Romance
Writers of America, Historical Writers of America, and the Women’s Fiction
Writers Association. Norma is a former RN who lives in the mountains of New
Mexico with her husband of 41 years. They have two adult children.
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Norma:
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