God of the Storm

    The other night my family and I were headed home from a Sunday evening church service while an intense storm was working its way towards our area. Now, there were no serious threats from what we knew but nevertheless we found it beneficial for us to be home safe for the night as quickly as possible. I must tell you at this time that my wife, Alexah, has a fascination with storms. It is not so much that she is scared but rather they bring a sort of excitement and anticipation to her that I will admit does not happen to me. Personally, I believe she has this energy because she wants to keep us safe and feels like she should be on top of what is going on in case there were something coming that would require us to be alert and possibly even take shelter. I think this is common for many people about storms. There is a sense of recognizing the power and unpredictability that can come in a severe storm and it is best to always be on guard. Unfortunately, those that live in our southwest Missouri region know all too well the destruction that a bad storm can cause in a short amount of time. 
    In Psalm 29, scholars argue that David is writing while either thinking about or perhaps even watching a storm pass through. If you have ever been outside as a storm draws near and the wind begins to pick up and that rain smell catches the air, you may begin to put yourself beside David as he pens these words that start as a call to Worship. Historical accounts will even tell us that this particular Psalm was used often, being read aloud amongst congregations while tempests passed or even being read by parents to their children during such storms. Verse two begins “Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name.” David starts by calling on his audience to “give” God the glory that He deserves. Now we recognize the “giving” is not done because God needs your praise or glory but rather you are simply recognizing things as they are and putting God in His correct place. It is a perspective shift. I wonder how many of us would have a much better experience in prayer if we would begin praying by just simply shifting our attention to God and putting our problems and issues into perspective with the God that we serve. David does not only call us to worship but then he gives reasons and examples as to why God is worthy of this worship. 
    In the following verses (3-9) David is going to give his readers powerful images of the power and might of God, specifically zooming in on the “Voice of the Lord”. He emphatically states, “the voice of the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon” and then says that God’s voices “shakes the wilderness.” At the time, the cedars of Lebanon were renown for their strength and quality, in fact, when Solomon begins constructing the temple it is these very cedars, he uses for building material because they were the best to the known world. David is conveying to his readers that those things that seem indestructible and mighty on earth are like splinters and twigs and God speaks. It reminds me of the chorus we used to sing often “What a mighty God we serve.” David will give seven specific descriptions of the voice of the Lord in this short section, and everything comes together at this climatic moment when those in the temple cry out “Glory!” Perhaps, when the power and strength of God is pondered there is little to say but just that. He is an all-powerful, tree snapping, earth shaking God. However, it is at the end of this psalm that I find my favorite part.
    After giving us this amazing depiction of God’s power and might and going into detail about the strength of His voice and how able our God is, David then reveals why it is that is such good news for us. Verse 11 prayerfully says “May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!” You see the good news about the power and strength of our God is not just that He is capable of producing such might but that He is willing to move in such mighty ways on your behalf. David recognizes that Yahweh is powerful and mighty but that He is also personal and that He will take that same strength that quakes the earth and shatters the cedars and He will share it with His people. Then, after revelation of God’s power and strength are realized, it is followed by this overwhelming peace that Paul describes as passing understanding (Phil 4:7). This isn’t the type of peace that comes when a storm is over, but this is that “shalom” as in things are as they ought to be and God is so powerful that He can endow you with that kind of peace right in the midst of the storms you may be going through. This beautiful truth should bring us full circle right back to where we started “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name” and when God shows up may we continue to cry out “Glory!”