Prepare for Life’s Storms with Biblical Wisdom and Leadership

Forecasting the weather isn’t new. Jesus said as much in Matthew 16:3, “And in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.” When we interpret the sky that says our weather forecast is bad, we prepare accordingly. The worse the forecast, the more we prepare. Depending on where you live, you may be familiar with the weather patterns and know how to prepare as soon as the forecast is announced. I live in an area of the Midwest often referred to as “Tornado Alley.” We are always on guard for tornado forecasts.

One day my son and I were out for some bonding time. We had breakfast at a restaurant and were wondering what to do next. Should we go to the mall or go home and watch a movie? We had no idea that our minds would be made up for us. We are East Coast born and raised, which is why we were unaware of the forecast that day. As with many tornadoes, a hailstorm preceded the tornado. Tree limbs and hail flew by the windshield as I drove as fast as I could to get us home and into the basement. The car was battered along with the roof and siding on our house. We made it but just barely.

Why We Must Prepare for Life’s Storms

Tornados require you to shelter in a basement or closet to get away from flying debris. Hurricanes can cause flash floods that require you to seek higher ground. Preparation for snow or winter storms requires you to make sure you have fuel or heat along with enough food and a generator in case the power goes out. But how do you prepare when you don’t even see the storm clouds gathering—when you don’t see the signs of your times? Not only did I not see the storm approaching, but I also confused the thunderous applause I heard as I stepped off the stage of a wonderfully successful military chaplain ministry career with the rumble of thunder in an Elijah-type thunderstorm. Preparation is key to surviving the storms of life and will help you get through life. But when a cataclysmic storm catches you off guard, what helps you to survive?

I was not prepared for the multiple storms that came my way soon after I planted New Life: key staff abruptly resigning, church growth slowing down, and the banks not keeping their word. The voice of the late James Cleveland comes to mind, “The tempest would rage, and the billows would roll.” Given that storms in life are inevitable, there are some things we can do to prepare for, even when we don’t know they are coming—when we don’t know the signs of our times. . . .

Leadership Lessons: How to Prepare for Life’s Storms

First and foremost, Joshua was a military man who found his confidence in order, structure, and routine. We had that in common. Without knowing what was ahead, I emulated Joshua’s life in many ways. When he came to the unknowns, he sent spies to do a reconnaissance mission. When I planted the church upon my retirement, I had what the military called an ADVON team, which was like a reconnaissance team. It was a select group of leaders who did all the legal paperwork to establish the church plant. I could not have anything to do with the legal formation of the church to avoid any conflict of interest of me potentially persuading military members to leave the chapel services and start a church.

Joshua led a million and a half people who were neither versed in wilderness trials nor spiritually mature. This meant in addition to knowing himself in order to defeat an enemy, he had to develop leaders to fight the pending battles. Leadership development was no small undertaking for Joshua. Not only did he have to develop their military fighting skills, he also had to develop them spiritually. Circumcision was a public deterrence for the men of Israel to be identified if they went to a house of ill-repute. Circumcision was also public pain leadership preparation (Joshua 5:7-8).

It is hard to prepare people who have never been circumcised by life or fought together. Stepping into promises they lacked life experience for took courage and consecration. As my mother used to tell me when I was a boy preacher, “Son, it’s more than a notion.” Our Jericho was going to be building the people and the church building at the same time with the forecast of storms the weatherman didn’t tell us about.

Even though I was not aware of storms ahead, the fervor of our worship, praise, and prayer life helped prepare us. People gathered from all around the metro to join in with the joyful noise of the new church plant. I didn’t know these were preparatory steps for foreboding storms. They were a part of my theological foundation for starting a church. Military precision produced Israel’s victory when the walls of Jericho fell. Worship, praise, and fervent consecrated prayer prepared me for the storms we had no clue were coming our way. Like Joshua had his own storms to get through, I, too, faced internal struggles that threatened to sink our ship. They were a part of the unseen turbulence ahead.