Sleep in Peace

Psalm 4:8

I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

With the hurricane behind us and clean up and repair work still going on, many are reviewing their decision to stay or evacuate. Many are sharing the lessons they learned.

My husband and I spoke to a woman recently who said she had about as much damage to her property as we had. She was grateful she didn’t have to repair more than she did. My husband told her we were glad we stayed to protect our house from rain damage. We changed out the wet towels at the front door that absorbed the water being blown in by the sideways rain.

God warns and protects his people. But sometimes He asks people to help others without giving them a warning. I have an out-of-town friend whose parents live in the Houston area. He came to Houston before the storm arrived so he could help his parents if they needed it. During the storm, they got a call from the neighbor across the street, also an older couple. My friend crossed the street, fighting the wind and rain the whole way. When he arrived he found a man in a wheelchair trapped between the sliding glass door at the back of the house and a tree that had crashed through their roof into the living room. The storm had blown a tree into the middle of the house and rain streamed in through the roof, flooding one side of the house. He was able to get the man and his wife to the back bedroom where they were safe and dry for the remainder of the storm.

Sometimes we see that we are where God wants us to be, even if we don’t recognize until later through hindsight the real reason God wanted us there. Another friend’s brother has a home on Galveston Island. They grabbed a few things and evacuated. Before the hurricane came too close, they felt the Lord urging them to go back to get a few more treasured items from their home. When they arrived, they saw their neighbor outside. She was without transportation and worrying about her ability to evacuate since she’d waited so late. They brought the woman back off the island with them and thanked God for the opportunity to help their neighbor. When the man went back to his home after the storm, the home was still standing.

We can thank God for protecting us before, during, and after the storm. But storm or no storm, we can live in the safety of God’s presence. And sleep in peace.