During this past week (Jan 5-8, 2014), we suffered frigidly cold
temperatures. The story affected the entire eastern part of the North
American continent. Where we live, we were blanketed with 2 feet (60 cm)
of snow and temperatures below -30 degrees Celsius, and we didn't even
have the worst of it. But even sunny Georgia suffered -16 degree
temperatures.
By Monday, January 6, 2014, over 3700 flights had
been cancelled.
On Tuesday the weather worsened. The roads were
even more slippery, and blowing snow led to white-out conditions,
claiming huge sections of the roads. Some major highways closed down
completely. Many US schools were closed, and in Canada, school busses
were cancelled on Tuesday and Wednesday. Even my wife had to cancel two
doctor's appointments due to the inclement weather.
The next day,
Wednesday, my youngest day was supposed to fly back to Western Canada to
continue his schooling. When we arrived home, he was shocked to learn
that his plane had been cancelled. Apparently our airport had cancelled
all incoming and outgoing flights for over eight hours, and the backlog
of passengers was tremendous.
Deep down inside, I was relieved. I
would have my son for another couple of days. Besides, I didn't want him
driving to the airport on inclement roads, and I certainly didn't want
him in an airplane on an icy runway.
When my wife arrived home,
we left for our daily walk (It doesn't matter how bad the weather is,
nothing keeps us inside!). When we arrived back home, my son was all
excited. The airport was beginning to open back up. To catch up on the
backlog of stranded passengers, airlines were sending in their biggest
planes to clear up the mess.
My son had waited for a long time to
connect with someone from Air Canada. Suddenly he was disconnected, for
no apparent reason. He called again, and this time there were no
announcements, no music, only complete silence for two minutes. When a
voice finally came on, he realized he had been connected with a line
reserved for priority passengers. Somehow, due to the huge number of
incoming calls of people anxious to reschedule their flights, there had
been a glitch in the system, and he was inadvertently switched to the
priority line. They had just one seat available on a flight Wednesday
morning, a priority seat, and they gave it to our son, complete with a
complementary meal and snack. This was no coincidence! Thank you Lord.
Still the roads were far from desirable, and my wife would have to
drive him to the airport early in the morning. It's a two hour drive in
the best of times, and on such inclement roads, it would be pure
suicide. Still, somehow, I was completely at peace, not worrying about
anything. We had our last dinner together, a dinner prepared specially
by my son, who would easily be able to get a job as a chef, and we
enjoyed our evening to the maximum.
Once upstairs to prepare
myself for bed, I was assaulted by doubt. "What if they didn't make it?
I would lose my son and my wife, both. Is this wise?" I recognized that
voice from before, and it wasn't from God's Holy Spirit: Rather it was
from one of the devil's minions. A few weeks ago, I had learned that
anything that disturbed my inner peace, unless I was dwelling in sin,
came directly from one of the devil's minions. So I did what I had
learned worked stupendously: "Get out of my mind you evil one. You are
not welcome here. I am a child of God. In Jesus' name, out! I will trust
solely in my Lord!"
I felt inner peace returning, but God knew I
needed a sign that He would protect my family. He put into my mind the
story of Esther and Mordecai. Mordecai discovered a plot against the
king, and he and Esther saved the king from harm. Many years later, the
tables were reversed, and this time, the king saved Esther and Mordecai.
I knew God was in complete control. I had truly nothing to worry about.
The next morning I woke up at 3:30 a.m., just in time to say goodbye
to my wife and son. As I went back to bed, I remembered the sign of
Esther and Mordecai. I smiled and felt complete peace. Nothing disturbed
my rest. My Father was taking care of my family.
They both
arrived safely, one to the airport, and the other back to work.
Why worry when we can run into the arms of the only One who can give us
rest, even amidst calamity? "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most
High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty." (Psalm 91:1, NIV) Thank
you Jesus that we have nothing to worry about. You are our rest. You are
our peace. We can face anything undisturbed when staying in your
presence. Thank you Lord for being my everything!
Rob Chaffart
The Storm that Froze North America. P.S. Restful Repose
Today's Bible Verse:
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In
this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the
world." (John 16:33)
The Storm that Froze North America. P.S. Restful Repose
Announcement:
You want to experience real rest and real inner peace? Come to Jesus. He is the Only One who can give you those blessings.
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