Storms.

I hate storms.

And this year has been the year of the storm.

It seems like every time you turn around there is a hurricane headed straight for you, a tornado threatening to destroy everything you own, or a lightning bolt just waiting to eat up your house.

I remember, as a child, my father was a storm freak. He would always know the exact number of miles the next storm was, and when we should take cover. To 6 year old me, I thought it was all just a game when my brothers and I had to go get our sneakers and gather in one of our basement closets. {Which honestly, probably wasn't needed every single time... We're in East TN, for crying out loud.}

But after I started getting older, I starting getting really really scared when storms approached, {even the dinky little ones} and to this day I'm scared of most storms.

I can't even begin to imagine what these people that have truly been effected by storms feel like...

Do you ever wonder why God let's tragedies, including these terrible storms, happen? I do, I won't even lie.

How can you not look at the faces left homeless or broken-hearted from the loss of a loved one and not wonder "Is He just not paying attention..."?

How can we find joy in the storms?

Storms in our relationships...

Storms in our confidence...

Storms blocking the clarity of which path we should take...

I'm not really sure of a permanent fix. But I am sure of one thing--

 When I am having the hardest time feeling lonely, feeling ugly, feeling heart-broken, or feeling like the world just hates me and everything I stand for- I seek God the most.

Do you think, perhaps, that sometimes it takes God nearly destroying our vain, selfish, "it's all about me" world to bring us back to Him?

Pathetic.

Humbling.

Think about it.