I live in the great state of Texas and we have just gone through “Snowmageddon.” What is “Snowmageddon?” It is the winter storm that hit us hard this week, leaving us without power, water and some without food. I was snowed in for a week but thank God we were prepared for the storm. We experienced rolling power outages and little to no water at times but God kept us healthy and safe.
During this storm I had a lot of time to think. There were no phones ringing, no email notifications, no to do lists, no appointments and no distractions. Times like this allow me to hear from the Lord clearly, process my thoughts and mentally process the current circumstances.
As I woke up to pray, the other morning, I couldn’t help but think, what is God saying that “we,” are not getting. We went from a 11 month battle with COVID seeing many of our friends and family pass away due to the deadly virus, being quarantined, staying six feet away from neighbors, told not to go to church, store shelves being bare with no toilet paper insight and now confined to our homes again due to this snow storm. It is definitely unusual to have snow in Texas but for it to be a week long storm with snow, ice, rain and high winds was pretty much unheard of for the cowboy state. This caused me to dig deeper into the Lord to see what was on his heart and what was the meaning to these trials.
I added a post about my thoughts to my Facebook page and a friend messaged me a video prophecy, that was recorded in December 2020, that stated snow would fall in unusual places and the will use it to Lord cleanses the land. Something in me connected to the prophecy and as I began to do my own study I identified that what the speaker stated was true according to scripture.
As I was pondering that fidget morning I realized there were many without power, many who were ill and many who were homeless. How would they fair though this massive storm? What about those who needed water and didn’t have it? My mind ran with thoughts like these for some time until I realized these thoughts were my call to prayer.
Growing in the Lord, I am learning that the Lord will use whatever is convenient to draw us to himself. I wondered if other devout believers were getting this same call to prayer or were they worried about their own affairs and love ones. Don't get me wrong, this storm was cause for an alarm and concern. My point is we can not be stuck there but rather keep our hearts fixed on the Lord. When I received the call to intercede on behalf of others, fifteen plus years ago, I realized prayer for others would open the door for God to cover whatever I’m dealing with or stood in need of.
How do you respond to the storms in your life? Do you begin to focus on yourself or do you seek the Lord for what’s on his heart? Do you get angry, grab a drink or stop talking? During this time of praying for others the Lord spoke to me though a friend,, and gave me the courage to deal with some lingering issues I needed to address. These were not just conversations to have but they were serious situations that dealt with my calling and hearing God clearly to speak prophetically. I addressed the issues with the necessary party and great peace was the result of it. I was able to gather understanding and instructions on how to proceed.
Pouring out on behalf of others through this unprecedented storm opened a door for me to receive the blessing of peace and answers concerning these sensitive matters. We never know how God is going to move as we pray but if we trust Him we can be sure that He will.
I don’t pray simply to get the things I want and have an easy life. I pray because I desire to know God more intimately, pray his will into the earth realm and to bring comfort and peace to others. Our words have power to release God’s will, being the talker I am, I surely want to do my part.
This winter storm was not easy to endure and for many it causes great fear and harm, some even lost their lives but as I surrendered the storm and its circumstances surrounding it to the Lord I was able to endure this storm with peace that passes all understanding.
Prayer is not a chore it’s a choice. I love that God has an open door policy. I don’t have to be a certain way, or use fancy words, I can simply be me and talk to Him. I want to encourage you to press into the Lord now so that when the BIG storm comes you will be ready. Spending time with God through prayer and his word prepares us for present day and what’s to come.
Are we using God as a vending machine, put in a prayer pop out an answer or are we using prayer as a means of effective communication with God? I want you to pause and evaluate your prayer life. Are you ready for the next storm in life? Have you spent time getting armored up through the scriptures and with prayer? Or are you looking to survive on the prayers others are praying on your behalf?
One thing that I will share with you is that the Lord spoke to me during my time of prayer; that something else is coming. Something much bigger than this snow storm. God has already shown us that He can shut the world down but still there was no consistent change and repentance. I’m not afraid of what’s to come because I’m intimately connected to the one who controls all things. But are you ready to survive the storm?