Through it all my eyes are on you. Through it all it is well with me. Let go my soul and trust in Him, the waves and wind still know His name. 

Storms.  We can’t avoid them. Some come quickly and hit hard leaving a mess in it’s trail, a sense of hopelessness, a rawness of what was and what now is.  Other’s are slow and steady never seeming to end and continuing to grind and wear down what is in it’s path.  Pushing and pulling back and forth relentlessly till it’s grip is loosened.

Today I sat gazing into the ocean after a quick night’s storm.  The road behind me scattered with brightly colored fall leaves freshly fallen from the brittle tree branches and loosened tree limbs that lay across the road.  The waves crashing continuously with such rage and force upon the sand.  The wind blowing fiercely pushing against anything that comes in its way.   The parallel of storms so quickly brought to mind. The storms of nature and the storms of life that weigh heavily upon us.

There are varying types of storms both in nature and in life but none of them are often invited nor are they typically enjoyed.  Storms bring change.  Change that requires work and effort to repair, repairs that often take longer than we planned to allow for or repairs that cost more than we are willing to give.  Storms bring a surrender of ourselves.

To surrender to the storm that faces me I must cease resistance.   That does not mean to give up or to give in.  It means to fix my eyes on the one who CAN calm the storm.  It means to let go of self and to trust in Him when the waves crash.  It means to be still even when the winds continue to blow fiercely upon oneself.  Yes, storms will bring change. A change that is often needed and frequently avoided.  Sometimes a renewing of oneself or a reshaping of what once was will bring an increase that never would have happened had the storm not come through.  To surrender to the storm is to say “It is well with my soul.”  It is saying Lord I cannot see but I believe.  Lord I trust that your plans for me are greater than the plans I have.  To surrender is to lay it down at his feet and to rest in his presence knowing that he goes before me, he stands beside me and he is with me.

So many are facing storms today.  Some of the storms are relentless and some so sudden and breathtaking.  In either storm our posture and position remains the same.   We must cease resistance and fix our eyes on the one who can calm the storm.  The storm will inevitably stir up a sense of disorder within.  A disorder that needs to be attended to and one that can be if we surrender.  Surrender not in part but in full – all that we have and all that we are.   To step aside of the chaos and say “Through it all my eyes are on you. Through it all it is well with me. Let go my soul and trust in Him, the waves and wind still know His name.”