Stormy

A couple of nights ago, I was awakened at 2:30 a.m. to the shrill whine of tornado sirens outside my window.  Ah, springtime in Oklahoma.

Giant chunks of hail hit my window, and my daughter came careening down my hall in a fit of fear before I could even sit upright in my bed.  (My boys, incidentally, did not wake up.  I suspect that if the roof lifted off our house and some tree branches reached in and picked the boys up and shook them upside down, they might wake up.  Might.)

As I held my daughter and tried to awaken, I noticed the room was illuminated by the soft glow of our tiny television, and my husband was silhouetted, sitting at the foot of our bed.  His eyes were honed in to a scary-looking radar screen. 

"Shhhh," he whispered.  "Go back to sleep.  I'll keep an eye on things, and I'll wake you up if we need to go to the shelter."

For about 2.4 seconds I considered arguing with him.  Then I looked at my daughter, who had already fallen back asleep in my cushy bed, and I just nodded.  I was horizontal and sound asleep before I could think another thought.

The night dragged on, storms ravaging our city.  I awakened several more times to thunderous, howling noise, but my sleepy eyes always saw, first of all, my husband at the television.  And every time, I relaxed instantly, dropping back to sleep.

The visual image is staying with me powerfully:  my strong husband, quietly yet sharply keeping watch over his family, while the rest of us were sleeping too soundly to know to be thankful.  We just slept, because it's what you do at nighttime, and we left all the safety issues to him. 

And I wonder, as I navigate other kinds of "storms"--will the day ever come when I rest quite as easily in God's watchful care?  His silhouette may not be as visible--to my eyes, anyway--as that of my husband's, but He is surely perched just as soundly at the foot of my bed, on the hood of my car, on the shoulder of my children, on a dusty road in Uganda.  May I trust, and rest.

Comments

[TransitionGirl]

I pray that the Lord will give me such a great and strong husband like yours. :)

[Bethany]

What a great man you have. Like the young woman above me, I too am praying for a husband that will someday watch over me and our children.

[chrissie]

Love the analogy of God watching over us, of resting under his watchfulness. Of knowing He is present even in the storms.

[Kilikina]

i love that analogy

[Deidra]

I simply love this post. What a wonderful picture of love...resting in the knowledge that you are being watched over.

[Lorraine]

dude. Awesome.

[Minnesotamom]

Great analogy--I was thinking, "Man, I wish I would trust God that much" before you even got to your point.

Also, kudos to your husband for giving up his sleep to be his family's protector. You're a blessed woman.

[Elisa]

That was beautiful! Perfect image of what a marriage should be as compared to God's love & protection for us as well.

[mimi2six]

Just another reason why I'm so proud of my wonderful son-in-law!

[Jenn]

aw, great post and a great reminder about God's care for us :)

[Kim]

Thank you for that wonderful picture! Just thank you it touch my heart this morning!

[Georgia Mom]

I'm so thankful I have the Lord to protect and guide my family as well. But, I have to admit that I'm the offical weather girl in my house. I'm always the first one up to watch the weather and make sure we don't need to run to shelter. My sweet, wonderful, God-loving husband could sleep right through a tornado. At least we all have the Master Weather Man, keeping watch over us at night!

[Ladybug Crossing]

Amen.

[chocolatechic]

May it be so.

Way to go Mr. Dryer.

[Mary]

God is even more trustworthy than our human husbands. How marvelous to know it is His hand that sends our men to protect us. Ladies without husbands, when you look for your husband to be, be wise. Look for a man who believes what you believe and will have the same commitment you have to God and to marriage, not necessarily one who momentarily "turns you on." Hearts are deceitful as God's word says. Feelings change. Shannon, you and your family were in my thoughts and prayers as I listened to the weather reports. I also thought of my sis in Arkansas in the same path.

[Nikki]

Thanks for a beautiful post. Just what I needed to start my day.

[Jenni]

WAAAAAH!! This is a wonderful, powerful bit o' imagery.

*sniffle* Thank you.

[Richelle F]

That is beautiful. Thanks!

[April]

That was a beautiful post! I am going to link my readers to it. It is something we all need to be reminded of!!

[Judy]

Very nice...we all need to be reminded of God's ever-present care.

[We are THAT family]

You painted a beautiful picture. One I needed to see. Today. Thank you.

[Sarah]

Beautifully written!

[TZ]

Thanks so much for sharing your story...it was so touching.

[TZ]

Oh and I was looking at your reading list...I loved My Antonia, just the way she described the fields of wheat was poetic.

[Jennifer (Et Tu?)]

What a beautiful post. Wow.

I was actually praying for you Oklahoma folks last night. A big storm passed through here sometime in the middle of the night (don't know what time since the clocks went out). I used to love thunderstorms but now that I'm a mother I hate them -- they remind me how powerless I am against larger forces. I was actually thinking something similar (although less eloquent) to what you posted here, that I needed to turn to God and rest, but instead I went down to my computer to obsess about the radar and try to figure out when it would end.

I saw that we were only exposed to the tail end of the system, but that Tulsa and Oklahoma city were getting pounded. So, if you're near either of those areas, I was sitting at my computer praying for you in the middle of the night last night. :)