Storms happen to all of us.

Storms surprise us; storms sideswipe us in life.

Many times, we fall onto our couch and think, “I did not see that coming.”

The funny thing about storms though is that you can see them coming in someone else’s life better than you see them in your life.

Have you ever had someone tell you they didn’t see something coming and you thought, “How could you miss it?” We all saw your marriage going that way, we told you. We saw that financial decision is a poor one a mile away.

A storm is when you feel helpless. Life feels chaotic; you have this “I did not see that coming” feeling afterward.

Some storms are out of our control, things like getting laid off, when you were abused or when you can’t have a baby. When cancer comes back, when your kids walk away from their faith, you have a miscarriage, or you are depressed and can’t see a way forward.

But some storms, we cause. How you respond to things in your life. Who you let into your life and who you allow influencing your life.

Your marriage is another area we have some control over. We don’t want to admit it, but the choices we made earlier in life had a more significant effect on our marriage than we expected. We didn’t expect that sleeping around in our 20’s to affect us in our 30’s. Who knew those financial decisions would still be felt ten years later.

Or the resentment and bitterness you carry around from past relationships and hurts.

Regardless of the storm or the cause, many of us, when we get stuck in a storm in life wonder where God is.

There is a fascinating passage in Mark 6 that shows us something important about God and storms.

Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After he said good-bye to them, he went away to the mountain to pray. Well into the night, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land. He saw them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Very early in the morning he came toward them walking on the sea and wanted to pass by them. When they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out, because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke with them and said, “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Then he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. They were completely astounded, because they had not understood about the loaves. Instead, their hearts were hardened.

What is fascinating to me is that Jesus intended to pass by them. He didn’t plan on stopping.

But isn’t Jesus supposed to save them? To pull them from the storm? Stop it? Bring relief?

Sometimes Jesus stops the storm. Sometimes he pulls us from it and brings relief. And sometimes he passes by.

This might seem like Jesus is leaving them (or us), but that is far from it.

Dave Furman in his book Kiss the Wave: Embracing God in Your Trials said, The better question isn’t whether or not Jesus wanted to help his disciples, of course, he did, but the question is, how did he want to help them.

In 1 Kings, when God showed himself to Elijah, He did so by passing by him.

In the book of Exodus, God showed Moses his power and presence by passing by him.

Jesus is showing them and us he is God by passing by them.

Here’s how I’ve seen this play out in my life: when someone else gets my answered prayer. Has that ever happened to you? You pray for your marriage, but it seems like other people’s marriage improves. You pray for your finances and others get blessed. Same as you pray for your kids and others seem to get ahead. You pray for your career and a co-worker gets promoted and gets the raise.

God is more visibly at work in someone else’s life. God has more visibly blessed them with a comfortable life compared to our lives.

Sometimes God will move in life near us to show us He can. Not to taunt us or diminish our faith, but to strengthen it.

In her book, It’s Not Supposed to be This Way: Finding Unexpected Strength when Disappointments Leave You Shattered, Lysa Terkeurst shares this prayer and if you find yourself in a storm and finding it difficult to trust God and cling to him, I pray this prayer helps you:

Oh, dear God, help me trust You beyond what my physical eyes can see. As the winds of all that’s uncontrollable whip around me and thrash against me, I need something to ground me. Steady me. Hold me together when circumstances are falling apart. I want to trust you beyond what my eyes can see. Amen.