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Tag: life storms

Hang On to Your Hat

Hang On to Your Hat

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Hang On to Your Hat--woman holding hat on a windy day. Puppy in foreground.Recent storms brought windy weather. As a result, you needed to hang on to your hat. You also needed to hang on to everything else around you.

To hang on to your hat means to prepare yourself.

Something is about to happen, and you want to get ready. Often, the event is unexpected and shocking. It may affect:

  • Individuals
  • Small groups
  • Large numbers of people

A similar expression tells you to hold on to your hat.

Life is full of surprises.

It frequently throws you for a loop with both pleasant and unpleasant changes. Like roller coaster rides, its twists and turns can thrill or terrify. Changes occur in:

  • Relationships
  • Employment
  • Weather
  • Health
  • World events

When life storms or trials occur, you may find it hard to hang on to your faith. 

Change throws you off balance. You struggle to understand. Yet, God uses every experience, good and bad, expected and unexpected, to help you grow.

Hang on to your hat and see where God leads.

Through even the hardest times, you may be pleasantly surprised.

“‘Where is your faith’ he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, ‘Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him’” (Luke 8:25 NIV).

Thanks to Judy Corbin for the suggestion and to Karen Atwood for the photo.

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Let Up

Let Up

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Let Up--Ice covered shrubA few years ago, everyone hoped an ice storm would soon let up. The heavy ice:

  • Covered and broke limbs on shrubs and trees
  • Downed power lines
  • Made travel impossible

Sometimes we feel like we cannot get a let up from life’s storms. When it rains, it pours. Problems overwhelm us. We reach the end of our rope.

Recent tornadoes:

  • Destroyed homes and property
  • Injured and killed people going about their daily lives
  • Damaged entire communities

To let up means to slow down or stop.

This can apply to:

  • Weather
  • Speed
  • Hard times
  • Physical, mental, or emotional pressure

This expression often applies to relationships.

  • Children want parents to let up on rules.
  • Employees want bosses to let up on work.
  • Many times, we need to let up on ourselves.

Whatever our pressures, God offers relief.

Problems do not always go away. However, God offers peace, hope, and comfort in every situation.

“We are pressured in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair” (2 Corinthians 4:8 NIV).

Thanks to Sue Davis Potts for the suggestion.

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Keep On Keeping On

Keep On Keeping On

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Keep On Keeping On--storm at seaMany times we feel like we are drowning in a sea of responsibility. The storms of life hit. We have too much to do with too little time or energy to do it. Yet, we keep on keeping on.

Storms at sea can arise quickly and cause much trouble.

  • Clouds roll in.
  • Thunder and lightning threaten danger ahead.
  • Rain pounds, and waves toss our boats.

Yet, we have no escape, so we batten down the hatches and keep going.

If we keep on keeping on, we refuse to give up.

Instead, we keep doing what we are doing – what we have to do.

Like storms at sea, life storms can arise quickly and cause much trouble. They may also be slow moving day-to-day responsibilities with no relief in sight. Either way, we hang on for dear life and do the best we can.

Most storms soon pass.

The sun comes out, and a rainbow appears.

All is well. Our troubles of the moment disappear.

Keep On Keeping On--whales in a choppy seaOther storms remain with us.

Our troubles continue, yet we make the best of a bad situation.

We look for moments of pleasure, like the sudden appearance of whales in a storm-tossed sea.

  • Friends call or visit to offer encouragement.
  • A funny moment occurs in the midst of many not-so-funny moments.
  • We enjoy a brief walk, beautiful music, or favorite foods.

Whether storms come and go or come and stay, we do not have to face them alone.

Other people will help, if they know our need. Jesus promised the presence of His Spirit to all who trust in Him.

When hard times come, keep on keeping on, my friend. May you know God’s never-failing peace.

“I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever” (John 14:16 KJV).

Thanks to a 5-3-20 commenter on Upper Room for the suggestion. First photo by enriquelopezgarre from Pixabay.

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That’s Life

That’s Life

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That's Life-tree with hard lifeWe can’t control everything in our lives.

  • Both good and bad happen.
  • We celebrate, and we mourn.
  • Everything can change in an instant.

That’s life.

This tree reminds me of life. All wrapped together, we see:

  • Healthy limbs
  • Dead limbs
  • Missing limbs
  • Injured limbs
  • Other plants pulling life from it

The poor tree, a victim of many storms, looks terrible. Yet, it stands. It:

  • Continues to grow
  • Refuses to fall
  • Still offers shade to everything and everyone under it

We can control parts of our lives.

Like this lovely old tree, we may have suffered much.

  • We probably caused part of our pain.
  • Others may have hurt us.
  • Life storms often leave us scarred.
  • We feel in over our heads.

That’s life.

In spite of our suffering, will we choose to stand? Will we:

  • Stand tall
  • Continue to grow
  • Refuse to fall
  • Still offer help to those around us

Will we pick up the pieces of our lives, give them to God, and keep going?

Life and death
Struggles and scars
Beauty and ugliness
All wrapped together
That’s life.

“[God] comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Corinthians 1:4 NIV).

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Save for a Rainy Day

Save for a Rainy Day

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Save for a Rainy Day--clouds and rain at Niagara FallsWe never know what the future holds.

Therefore, we need to save for a rainy day.

A few of us enjoy rainy days. Many people do not. For them, a rainy day means a bad time.

  • The sky becomes dark.
  • They must cancel outside plans.
  • Everything turns wet and messy.
  • They get in a bad mood.

Whether we like rainy days or not, we should prepare for them.

  • Keep an umbrella.
  • Make inside plans.
  • Dress for wet weather.
  • Do something to improve our mood.

When we save for a rainy day, we prepare for hard times.

Storms in life occur as well as storms in the weather. Life storms may include:

  • Job loss
  • Health problems
  • Home or car repairs
  • Other unexpected bills

We prepare for a rainy day – an emergency – by saving money. We hope we never have to spend that money. Yet, we have it if we need it.

As an old song reminds us, into each life some rain must fall.

Sometimes when it rains, it pours. Therefore, let’s batten down the hatches and get ready for the rain.

“The clouds poured down water, the heavens resounded with thunder” (Psalm 77:17 NIV).

Do you have an expression you want explained or a thought about this one? If so, please comment below.

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