(Read Mark 4)
When I wrote this, yesterday was 9/11. It was a day, like no other in my life and the lives of thousands around the globe. I look at life differently now, and can point to that exact time as the reason of my testimony. It was surreal. I had just pulled an all-nighter and couldn’t grasp what was going on. Our children were in elementary and middle school, my wife was a teacher then, 45 minutes away. The cell towers had been knocked out and for hours, I couldn’t reach my oldest brother who lived in Manhattan. There was so much uncertainty and fear surrounding me, I knew there was only one place to turn.
I got a text from Jen yesterday saying, “Do you think the attacks on 9/11 would have been so successful if it wasn’t such a cloudless, beautiful day?” Although no evidence confirms a backup date, the plan likely would have been rescheduled if bad weather had grounded flights. Tragically, the perfect bluebird skies on September 11, 2001, were a critical factor in the execution of the attacks. The hijackers were not expert pilots and relied on clear skies to navigate. The second plane to hit the World Trade Center even used the smoke from the first tower to find its target. A storm might have delayed or postponed the mission, but not stopped it.
Similarly, weather played a decisive role in the Allied invasion of Normandy during World War II. Originally scheduled for June 5, 1944, the operation had already been delayed several times due to storms and tactical concerns. Allied forecasters, led by James Stagg, predicted that a temporary break in the bad weather would occur on June 6. Recognizing the need for both favorable conditions and the element of surprise, General Eisenhower postponed the invasion by 24 hours. Even then, rough seas and strong winds hampered the landings, but June 6 was judged the only viable window—waiting longer risked losing secrecy and momentum.
He covers the sky with clouds;
he supplies the earth with rain
and makes grass grow on the hills.
He provides food for the cattle
and for the young ravens when they call.
Psalm 147:8-9
This Psalm reminds me that God is sovereign over nature, creation, and us. He is equally present on a gorgeous sunny day or a ferocious storm. There is a purpose in all He creates—even when we don’t understand. Too often I thank Him for beauty but forget to praise Him in the cold rain. Yet He is there nonetheless.
How do we know? Because He says so. Psalm 147 celebrates God’s providential care for His creation. God controls all weather and climate—things outside our control. Job 5:10 and Matthew 5:45 point out that rain, not sunshine, is a sign of His sustaining hand. Even creatures considered insignificant or unclean are not outside His care. “Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap… yet God feeds them.” Luke 12:24.
Israel’s adversaries, the Canaanites, attributed fertility and rain to their idols. Chief among them was Baal, the storm god, believed to control weather, crops, and even human fertility. Their pantheon also included El, the supreme god, and Asherah, the mother goddess—altogether numbering more than 200 deities. Psalm 147 corrects this, pointing to Yahweh alone as Creator and Sustainer. If God cares for ravens, how much more for His children? Rain, grass, and food are not human achievements but divine gifts.
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
Mark 4:35-41
I’ve always found this encounter curious. My skeptical nature casts a bit of condemnation on the disciples. They were with God—the Messiah (if they recognized Him yet)—or at the very least, the greatest Prophet to ever walk the earth. And He was sleeping. Did they really believe He would let them perish? What purpose would there have been in their drowning? After Jesus rebuked them for their lack of faith, they still questioned who He was, astonished that even the storm obeyed Him.
Jesus initiates the journey. His words carry authority and intent. What He begins, He will finish. They follow but didn’t see that. The “furious squall” symbolizes more than weather. It represents the uncontrollable forces of life. On the other hand, Jesus’ sleep demonstrates perfect trust in the Father and foreshadows the peace He offers His followers. Jesus rebukes the storm with the same authority He used to cast out demons. Nature itself submits to His voice. This storm is not just about weather—it is about Christ’s lordship over creation.
Jesus questions their lack of faith. Fear and faith cannot coexist fully; fear rises when faith weakens. Their fear shows they did not yet grasp who Jesus truly was. The disciples shift from dread of the storm to awe of Jesus: “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” They followed him from the beaches of Galilee but didn’t see the deeper revelation of Christ until much later.
Our lives work the same. Storms test whether our trust is in circumstances or in Christ. The same Jesus who calmed Galilee’s waters still reigns over the upheavals of our lives. Storms are not wasted—they become occasions to know Him more fully.
Another sunny day beneath this cloudless sky
Sometimes I wish that it would rain here…
Back Home — Yellowcard
We’ve had a fantastic stretch of weather lately. Sunny, highs in the low 80s, no humidity, and cool nights. On my run this morning, I mused, ‘Would this ever get old? How could life ever be difficult if every day was like this?’ When we were in California for a week, every day was a carbon copy—absolutely spectacular. People living in those conditions must feel blessed, because life seems so easy.
On a Ragnar run to Washington, D.C. a few years ago, I had the longest leg. The race covers about 200 miles with each team divided into 12 runners. I had the “captain” runs, so I finished last. We began in the rain and it continued for twenty hours. By the time I reached D.C., the sogginess of my shoes and shorts didn’t matter. The last leg was over 12 miles, ending at the Navy Yard in southeast D.C. Plodding through Georgetown on throbbing legs, I realized I was miserably lost. The Ragnar markers were nowhere to be found. It wasn’t about time. We weren’t going to win, but my team was waiting for me to finish. My wife was waiting for me to appear. Then I saw another runner in a Ragnar pinny, equally confused. We decided to run together on M Street until we spotted the next marker. Christ had provided this companion in the midst of my struggle. He put us together in the rain, in the storm. Finally, the crowd came into view. My team joined me for the last 500 yards. It felt like a kind of salvation. Jesus was with me when I was lost, and He stayed with me when I was found.
I am the Lord, and there is no other;
apart from me there is no God.
I will strengthen you,
though you have not acknowledged me,
so that from the rising of the sun
to the place of its setting
people may know there is none besides me.
I am the Lord, and there is no other.
I form the light and create darkness,
I bring prosperity and create disaster;
I, the Lord, do all these things.
Isaiah 45:5-7
In the past, battles were fought only in favorable weather, often in the summertime. Today, military operations are often carried out under the cloak of darkness. ‘Own the night’ is the watchword. Embracing harsh elements to gain every advantage has become the strategy of the most advanced and highly trained operators.
God claims ultimate authorship over both ‘light and darkness’ and ‘well-being and disaster.’ He is not the author of moral evil, but He allows the events of history, both prosperity and hardship. In ancient Near Eastern thought, light and darkness, good and evil, were often attributed to different gods. Here, God declares that He alone governs all, dismantling dualistic thinking. Nothing happens outside of His control. Both well-being and adversity serve His purposes to bless, discipline, warn, and bring people to Himself.
In the New Testament, Jesus is revealed as the Light (John 8:12), showing that God’s ultimate intention is to conquer darkness with salvation. Our faith should not depend on circumstances, since God works through both. 9/11 was unspeakable tragedy for some and victory for others. Sunny days are not necessarily good, and rainy days are not necessarily evil. God’s presence is in all things. There are not ‘many powers’ at work, only one sovereign Lord. Even in calamity, we can trust that He is working all things for His glory and for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).
Life Application:
- When storms come, we don’t need to measure the size of the waves but remember who is in the boat. He has not brought us this far to let us perish. Every storm can either shake our faith or strengthen it. How might Jesus be inviting you to trust His presence rather than fear the storm?