*Please enjoy the random (but adorable) photos of my Happy Buddies that have nothing to do with the content of this post. I didn’t have any photos of them in a storm, so these will have to do.* 
On Saturday afternoon the Happy Baby woke up from his nap crying hysterically.
I raced to his room.
I gathered my bawling baby out of the crib only to be covered in lots and lots of throw-up a moment later.
My thoughts immediately started going wild.
Like rodeo buffalo wild.
He had been crawling around earlier that day on a dirty floor and I had forgotten to wash his hands… What if he had contracted something serious? What if he was going to keep throwing up and would get dehydrated and we’d spend Mother’s Day Eve in the hospital with an IV? What if he was so sick we’d have to move back to the hospital for another 3 months?
As I vulnerably type these things, I wince at my lack of faith.
No matter how faithful God has proven Himself to me in the past (especially where the health of the Happy Baby is concerned – um did you see yesterday’s post?!), I still let myself get consumed with fear.
Later that evening, the Happy Baby spiked a fever.
Around 10 pm he still wasn’t settling after many attempts to rock, sing, and snuggle him to sleep. I finally gave up and wandered with him and my anxious heart out into the living room to watch TV with the Happy Hubby.
A thunderstorm stirred in the distance and I thought rather bitterly, “Fitting.”
It was upon us in a matter of minutes – the thunder cracking so loud the dishes in the cabinet were rattling.
The Happy Buddy roused awake and burst into tears from his bedroom.
He came hurtling out to join us on the couch as another thunderous boom filled the sky.
Both of the boys were crying now.
Then tears welled up in my own eyes.
I was heading down that path of hopelessness and despair. Do you know the one? When all of motherhood just seems like this big giant thunderstorm raining sick babies, and no answers, and FEAR, and sleepless nights?
Almost in an instant, the Lord reminded me of the words from that popular song, “I will praise you in this storm…”
And it hit me. Praise. Yes. That’s exactly what we needed to do.
Summoning strength from the Lord Himself (because my flesh wanted to just leave the boys with Daddy and go escape under the covers – or in a pint of ice cream), I reached over to hold the Happy Buddy’s hand.
Remembering something I had heard in a sermon once, I said in a hushed voice, “Whenever we hear a thunder boom, let’s see who can shout GLORY TO GOD the fastest.”
He wiped at his wet cheeks and I saw the faint hint of a smile.
We quietly waited for the thunder.
When it came, we all shouted, “Glory to God!”
And then we all dissolved into giggles.
“Shhhhhh!” the Happy Buddy said, “Here comes another!”
So we waited for the thunder again.
And our voices rang out, “Glory to God!”
Even the Happy Baby forgot his discomfort (which I later sheepishly realized was from teething) and sat there pointing his little finger heavenward.
Suddenly the big, horrible storm didn’t seem quite so bad.
That night when both boys were finally asleep… peacefully, I might add… I felt the nudging of the Holy Spirit.
Motherhood is full of storms.
From big storms like a child’s health, or mommy guilt, or whether or not to hold your child back a grade, or toddler tantrums, or teenager troubles, or even the whole pregnancy itself, to little storms like sibling squabbles or how/what to feed them, or the permanent red marker stains on your beautiful living room rug (when will they make a Magic Eraser for carpets?!?), or LAUNDRY, or that diaper blowout that happened right after you put fresh sheets in the crib…
Storms of motherhood are basically the things that happen that make us feel like we are not in control.
When real storms rage outside, there is nothing we can do.
When our kids get sick, there is not a whole lot we can do.
When our kids draw on the carpet, there is not a whole lot we can do (except Time-Out until he’s 17, maybe?).
If we are not careful, we can let these storms beat us up, knock us down, make us panic, make us weary, make us feel all alone, consume our thoughts and make us forget who loves us so incredibly much.
These storms of motherhood, however, are designed for our good.
Storms make us trust a little more. Storms teach us Who’s really in charge.
Storms make us better mothers.
Because doesn’t the rain make things grow?
My mother-in-law reminded me when I confessed my fearful heart about the Happy Baby, “Julie, you must be ready for the enemy’s attacks. Know they are coming so that when they do, you are prepared.”
Mentally prepared, friends.
The enemy can have a field day with our thought life, can’t he?
In a matter of seconds I was 100% sure the Happy Baby had something akin to Ebola and I was practically packing our bags for the hospital again.
But something even smaller like our kid getting in trouble at school, or pitching a fit on aisle 3 can make our thought life take us straight into the path of the storm and before we know it, we are laying down, defeated – convinced we are the worst moms on the planet and we are all alone.
So we must be prepared for the days of in-climate weather.
We must know what to do when they come.
I find it interesting that as our game from the night before progressed, we began to anticipate the thunder.
In fact, we couldn’t wait for it to come so that we could stand firm and shout joy in its face.
And with every shout of praise, we were reminded of our great and awesome Father who is bigger than any ole’ thunderstorm.
So maybe that means the next time the Happy Baby starts to show signs of illness, or the enemy starts whispering lies, or one my kids poops in the tub, or the kitchen looks like someone had a paint gun war in it, or I’ve been up all. night. long., or {insert-something-that-happened-to-you-that-didn’t-go-the-way-you-wanted-it-to-here}, BECAUSE THE STORMS WILL COME, instead of letting my thoughts run wild, or my flesh try to fix and figure out, or despair to creep in…
I will remember the night we shouted praise at the storm.
And maybe, as I learn how to respond to a storm, my Happy Buddies will, too.
“Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” Ephesians 6:10-11
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Tags: Motherhood, Parenting
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