Biblical Examples of Godly Storms
An example of a goldy storm can be found in the story of Jonah: “The word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai saying, “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and cry against it, for their wickedness has come up before Me.” But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. The LORD hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea so that the ship was about to break up….So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging… And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights (Jonah 1:1-4; 15,17).From this passage, it wasn’t the devil who caused the storm to arise but God. This, however, did not make the storm any less terrifying: from a threatening storm at sea to being thrown overboard from a ship and getting swallowed alive by a big fish! But, the end of this storm was redemptive. Jonah repented after being in the belly of the fish and got back in alignment with God’s will. When the same word of the Lord came to him a second time after his ordeal, to go to Nineveh and cry against it (Jonah 3:1), we read that “Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the LORD” (Jonah 3:3), unlike the first time when he ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish (Jonah 1:3). Although this God ordained storm was very severe, it wasn’t without God’s mercy and brought correction and redemption to Jonah and the great city of Nineveh (Jonah chapters 2 and 3).
Another example of a godly storm can be seen in the life of Abraham (Genesis 21:1-8, Genesis 22). After waiting till he was a hundred years old to receive his promised son, God disrupted the usual course of his family life when he told him to sacrifice the very son through whom his descendants were to be called (Gen 21:12). Since he had not yet received his descendants through Isaac, according to the promise God gave Him, I believe that fueled his faith to consider that God will still have to raise Isaac from the dead to fulfill His Word. And figuratively speaking He received His son from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19) plus a great reward because he passed the test of his faith (Genesis 22:9-18).
Everything that was written in the past was written for our learning (Romans 15:4). Even so, we are to learn from these biblical examples of godly storms and be ready and prepared for them as we journey with God. Because they are from God, they are for our benefit and not to harm us. By them, our faith is developed and we are brought into the centre of God’s will when we veer off.
Kwadwo Omari, PhD
February 9, 2022.
A Very Important Message
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23). Therefore, If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, I invite you to put your faith in Him. Pray the prayer below to accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour: “I come to you God in Jesus’ name and surrender my life unto you. I repent of my sins and I ask You to forgive me all my sins. I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord, and I believe with my heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead. I thank you God for saving me, in Jesus name, Amen”. If you sincerely prayed this prayer, believe and be assured that you are saved, for the Bible says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13, Romans 10:9-10, Acts 16:31). Find a Bible believing church to attend so that you can be discipled to grow in the ways of God. You can also email me ([email protected]) and I will be happy to grow together with you in Christ.