How to survive the storms of your life

Note: This is what Pat Flora told me about what she has gone through and what she has learned. I promised Pat I would help her tell her story to others, so,please read on: "I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand,I will not be shaken."(Psalm 16:8) When God breaks into our lives with "storms of trouble" he points us toward his greatness, glory and power. In this way God gave my life a firm foundation of hope. I now step confidently toward whatever he has for me in the future. My life is quite normal; in fact, I had many good things come my way. But I've also had a share of trials and troubles - storms I call them.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. After 20 years of marriage, 4 children a divorce, a bankruptcy, two broken vertebrae in my back, 2 car wrecks, family problems with the children, not enough money - just your normal everyday events. Hard as it was I prayerfully coped with all of it and moved on.
   
   Storm #1: After re-marriage, and a move from Illinois to New Jersey the storm clouds appeared. My son Mike wrecked his pick-up truck. Before I left New Jersey I called every prayer warrior I knew. Mike was flown to a St. Louis hospital in critical condition and in a coma. I flew to Illinois. Days dragged by for 28 days. Mike, still in a coma, developed: pneumonia, a blood clot, broken bones and severed basil nerves. Doctors said there was no hope. Family agreed to disconnect all life support. I called every prayer warrior I knew (nationwide) asked them to pray for a miracle for Mike. A nurse checked Mike a few days later and he opened his eyes, turned his head said: "Hi, I'm Mike." God had performed a miracle and brought Mile back to life with no medical assistance. Today, Mike is walking, talking and thinking and otherwise recovering.
2. Storm #2: While tending to Mike, my 79 year old husband, Tony, fell off a roof and was told he might never walk again. I called my prayers warriors again for their support. The doctors did surgery, installed metal rods. Tony is walking again. He is also slowly going blind. Then one day, while clearing snow off our driveway Tony was hit by a passing car, broke his shoulder, was hospitalized again. I called the prayers warriors yet again.
3. Storm # 3: Less than two years after Mike's miraculous revival, My 49 year old son Todd, while chopping down a tree for his sick father's fireplace, (Bill had cancer) Todd was knocked down by part of the falling tree. I called my prayer warriors again. Todd was taken to a Springfield (IL) hospital; he was paralyzed with two broken vertebrae in his neck. Then, after going home from the hospital in a wheelchair, his closest caregiver developed a problem with alcohol and so was often unable to help him with his daily needs. Later, Todd developed blood clots and has since been moved to Veterans Hospital in St. Louis (IL) for treatment and rehabilitation. Today Todd is still in a wheel chair and paralyzed from chest to toes but is beginning to get some feeling in some parts of his lower body. Praise God.
4. Storm #4: While Todd was in the hospital, his father (my ex-husband) died of cancer, causing even more grief and stress in our family.
   
   Lessons learned during the storms:
   
   (1) Pray! Call up the reserves. Ask your prayer warriors to get on their knees and report for duty! The storms were spiritually and physically difficult for all of us. We could never relax. We have learned much about trusting in and having faith in God. Without these tragic storms, we could have breezed along: self-centered, dependent on our intellect and money and never thinking about God and his love for us.
   
   (2) With God all things are possible.
   
   (3) You have not because you ask not.
   
   (4) It is not easy to pray and see no immediate results.
   
   (5) God is not like a fast food restaurant. His timing is different and better than ours.
   
   (6) In his time, God will answer our prayers.
   
   (7) The storms were so bad that at times, I was not able to pray. That is when I learned the Holy Spirit interceded for me with his own prayers to the Father for my family and me.
   
   (8)The emotional stress and grief of all of these storms gave me an overwhelming desire to do nothing but sit and feel depressed. A friend called. She heard me sobbing and was at my house within an hour. She put me to work dusting the upstairs of the house while she did the downstairs. In short, she knew she had to get me out of my semi-robotic state of mind and what she did demonstrated to me that - after all - life goes on.
   
   (9) The Bible tells us: "it came to pass." When in the midst of these storms I felt they would never end. They have passed, but the scars remain: Mike's way of walking may never be perfect. Tony's body has many scars, aches and pains. Todd's paralysis may never go away. Even so, we don't know what God will do or how long he will take to do it.
   
   (10) Now, my whole family is counting blessing, blessing we know came from God.
   
   (11) With each passing storm, we learn and mature.
   
   (12) After the storms, life is different, we walk different paths. Different friends take the place of old friends. Because of God's love he gives us new beginnings, new challenges to help us as we pass through this life toward our eternal life with him in Heaven.
   
   (13) I've stopped being the kind of person who worries about: replacing things in my house; wondering about how much taxes will go up; how I'm going to lose my excess weight; how to fix other people; my house; my car and myself.