Years ago, a hailstorm came through and damaged the roof on my home church in Frankfort, Indiana. Knowing that the church had to have a new roof, the people scheduled a construction crew to come. There was supposed to be several good days, so they tore off the shingles and sheeting of the old roof, getting it down to the rafters…when dark, angry clouds rolled in. It was a warm spring day, and then the temperature changed with cold air, bringing in a storm.
Rain had not been in the forecast! It had come out of nowhere. Everyone was alarmed since the roof was off, and the church was exposed. Something had to be done before it poured rain inside the church! The roofers were trying to put a tarp on the roof, but the wind was blowing the tarp everywhere.
It was close to the end of the school year for the Christian school inside our church. The students were wide eyed when one of the roofers came to the room where they were having school. “If something doesn’t change, the rain will destroy everything!” he said.
The roofers needed time to put the sheeting on. Then they could tarp it, and it wouldn’t be so destructive.
One of my sisters Mary Anne was alarmed and told our dad, “Daddy, pray that God holds the rain off!”
Daddy protested, “But I don’t have the faith.”
My sister insisted that Daddy go pray. Normally, Daddy had a lot of faith, but not that day. The clouds were just yards away, coming from the north, and the rain was inevitable.
As Daddy walked out of the church to go pray, one of the students, my nephew Lewis, got excited. It did not register to his eleven-year-old mind how little faith that his grandpa was feeling. All he knew was that when his grandpa prayed, God answered.
Lewis did not get permission from the teachers but ran out of the school room after his grandpa. He followed his grandpa and stood right next to him. He had faith in his grandpa’s prayer. He wanted to see how God was going to do it.
Daddy walked over and stood next to the church sign. He looked up into the heavens and raised his hand in the air in the stop motion and said something like… “Lord, I don’t have the faith. The church is going to get wet unless the clouds go away. But I don’t have the faith.”
As soon as Daddy said the amen, a strong wind came from the south. The wind was so strong that it blew my dad’s fedora off his head and across the parking lot. It also blew away the storm clouds.
Daddy was amazed and ecstatic. He hurried to where the workers were. He was so excited that he had them all get down off of the ladders so that he could tell them what God had just done when he had not “had enough faith.”
Something about this story hit me just right this week. I have some clouds that are on my horizon. I may be weak. I may not have enough faith, but I’m going to ask. My prayer may be simple and may include, “Lord, I don’t have the faith, but would you send the clouds away?”
It does not matter about the storm clouds that may have come out of the blue on your horizon. It may not even matter how much faith you feel or don’t feel.
You may be like my friend Kim Sayler who God clearly impressed her and her husband Mike to buy a sixty-acre ranch in Colorado to use for youth and family camp. The monthly payment and bills do not work out on paper for this couple who used to be Dave Ramsey followers! But when they obeyed and started walking through the doors that God opened, miracle after miracle has taken place.
When we arrived for camp last week, Kim’s eyes were shining bright with the latest answered prayer. They had used up the $22,000 to finish the girls’ dorm rooms, but with the raised prices in construction, things had cost more than they had thought. They overshot by $12,000! When it came time to get groceries for camp, there was no money! And yet the need was supplied before the day was through! Without taking pledges or asking anybody for any money, their needs were met! Groceries…supplied. Money for evangelist…supplied. Even the last night I was with her, a $10,000 check was given from somebody.
I have walked over the property and seen miracles—dining hall transformed from a garage, a huge tabernacle, bathrooms, and much more! It is enough to make my mind spin.
Yet when someone suggested what great faith that Kim had, she shuddered because she does not think that she is a spiritual giant of faith. In her weakness, God has supplied over and over again!
You may not feel like a spiritual giant. There are times that we are so weak. Maybe we need to remember that. Remember how weak and frail we really are. How inadequate and unimportant.
And yet, in those moments of our weakness, God chooses to use us. If we’ll let Him. He chooses to show himself strong.
I wonder if part of the reason for Daddy’s miracle was for his eleven-year-old grandson who was so sure that God would answer his grandpa’s prayers. And some of the reason for all the miracles on Kim and Mike’s Ranch Haven is so that the young people and loved ones passing through can see God answer modern prayers.
I thank God for every miracle He has allowed me to watch. I want to savor the moments when I have stood and watched the wind come out of nowhere and blow the clouds away.
Isn’t it nice that He remembers my frame? That he knows that I’m of dust? He delights in doing the impossible for us…even sometimes when our faith is weak.
WOW! I needed that today!
Me too!
That is so helpful; thanks! I needed that today, too. A similar situation happened years ago in our church in PA, only with different results. The roofers had just torn the shingles off the church roof to replace them, when a sudden storm blew in from nowhere. They tried frantically to nail tarps on the roof before they fled. The wind blew the tarps off, and as a result, rain soaked lots of things inside the building.
We were shocked when we first saw the damage. Water was standing inside the light fixtures in the sanctuary, hymn books were soaked; carpet was damaged. It looked pretty bleak.
But we couldn’t know what a blessing it became! Fortunately the insurance company paid for the damage. We were able to buy new carpet (it had needed replaced anyway), and make several other needed changes. So what looked like a catastrophe became a huge blessing–we only had to wait a while to see it.
Yes! God did this for us when our church was vandalized. We got insurance money, and it ended up being far nicer afterwards. ❤️
Oh Elizabeth, what wonderful words of encouragement to read today!! Thank you, thank you!! God, help us to strengthen our faith! His strength is made perfect in weakness. 🙏
I’m so glad because sometimes I feel so weak!
What a wonderful story about your Dad’s answer to prayer. Great encouragement was needed today. Thanks for sharing. I may read this at church sometime if that is ok.
I would be thrilled!