Thankful Thursday...Peace in the Storm

The "storms of life", as Bro. Kent calls them, have been our almost constant companions the past few years; we have seen over and over God's provision in those storms. Last night, though, we experienced His protection through storms of the literal sort...heavy thunderstorms/tornadoes with heavy rain, incredible winds (with lots of rotation), and the biggest hail I have ever seen. We got to see it up close and personal...our living room sofa was full of it!

Our 60+ year old house really doesn't have a good "hidey-hole" for storms, but we were all piled under mattresses in the back of the house last night listening to the radio say that strong rotation was coming over the border straight toward us. We had heard that the hail that was coming was phenomenal...some that was *bigger* than softball-size. Sure enough, we began to hear it hitting the roof. As we quoted Scripture and prayed for safety, my thoughts were directed toward our "iffy in the best of times" roof. Then we began to hear reports on the radio of windows being broken by the hail.

As the worst of the first wave passed, Billy got up and headed to the front part of the house. *Later* he told me, "I realized I was smelling fresh air all of the sudden." What he told me when he returned was "Your living room is done for." I thought it was the roof at first; then he went on to tell me that the large front window in the living room had been completely broken out by the hail.

God's protection and provision are amazing, though. There were glass and hail all over the couch and the center part of the living room floor; however, the mountain of laundry across the room waiting to be folded was completely dry and glass-free, as were the bookshelves (*full* of books) that flank the sofa. My piano, only feet away from the window, was also completely dry and undamaged. The *only* thing, other than the window, to sustain damage, was our couch. *It* is completely trashed (glass shreds totally embedded all over the nubby upholstery). It's one of those times that you can almost see God grinning...Billy had just moved that couch under that window a few days earlier. Friends had offered us a newer sofa, and we were just waiting for the first dry day when the guys were both off to move it to the house and put ours out for Dial-A-Truck. So...the only thing in the house that was damaged was headed to the dump already!

From the other reports of damage nearby...including homeschooling friends who lost their house due to downed trees and a fire in a small outbuilding at our church...I am amazed that our damage was as minimal as it was. I am so thankful for protection throughout the storms, and for protection so far from looters with the gaping hole in the front room. I'm thankful that although both vans have quite a bit of hail damage, the badly cracked windows are for *now* still intact, and it appears that the formerly driveable one is still driveable. :-) I'm thankful for friends and family who called often to check on us and who offered to help in various ways after the window incident.

I had more thoughts...but got interrupted several hours ago and can't remember them now. :-) Most of all, I am thankful for a God who truly does bring peace in the midst of the storm.

For more Thankful Thursdays, visit Iris at Sting My Heart.

Other recent thankful thoughts: the best husband in the entire world, simple pleasures, and not-so-simple pleasures.