Thunderstorms have become something of a production in our home ever since our dog Sugar ran away during one last year. It was the next day before we could find her (a miracle my husband even found her about 3 miles from home!) so she had been outside all night in the storm.

Now she can tell a storm is coming about two hours before we can. She starts to shake from head to toe, then grabs any pillow, chair cushion, or blanket she can find, scooting them backwards into corners or behind couches. After two or three seconds, she decides another place would be safer so she slides her whole “nest” to another corner, then another, always moving, never settling. If we happen to not be home when the storm comes, we come home to a mess as she’s tried to hide herself behind the dryer or behind the toilet. She has even tried to hide herself in the (cold) fireplace and we have to hold her back. Her panic puts her own safety in jeopardy.

So now I watch the weather closely. If there’s even a chance of rain, I make sure she stays indoors. If we must leave and there’s a chance of rain, I take measures to ensure she can’t harm herself (close the bathrooms and laundry room, cover the fireplace).

After going through several storms with her now, I know how to help her. For example, I watched the weather predictions this week and saw big storms were predicted yesterday afternoon. So with her usual breakfast I ground up a “Calm” pill for dogs we found on Amazon that helps her. (Now she’s super smart and doesn’t like the taste of the pill- if I try to give her a treat with it in but don’t offer the same to our other dog, she won’t eat it. If I feed her canned food she loves at anytime other than her regular breakfast or dinner time, she’s suspicious and won’t eat it with the pill in it. If she’s already shaking because the storm is two hours away I can only force feed it to her which I don’t like to do, so I must crush it up in her breakfast bowl if any storms are predicted that day and act like I don’t care which dog eats from which bowl though I do make sure she gets the one with the calm pill in it.).

Anyways… so we started with that pill yesterday morning. It doesn’t make her groggy just tones down her hyper nature. She was taking her usual nap in the afternoon and it started to rain. She woke with a start and looked at me with panic in her eyes. I spoke to her with reassurance in my voice. I got her Thundervest which helps a little (a dog vest wrapped snugly around her). I pre-placed pillows and blankets in a corner of the office I work in at home so she wouldn’t have to drag them. I sat on the floor with her. I played instrumental calming hymns (now I know you think I’m crazy) because it helps block out some of the sound of the wind and rain. She’s not as cuddly as our other dog but she does like to sit near me in the storm. The worst of the storm only lasted about thirty minutes. With all these steps, she’s progressively started to get calmer through the storms. And for the first time afterwards, when it was still raining but no longer thundering, she seemed to be super happy, wagging her tail and even smiling as I rejoiced with her that she made it!

(Okay, I know at this point you realize how deeply I care about my dogs, I probably overdo it a bit.)

Now to the point…. Watching my dog go through this fear and learning how to help her through it makes me think about how God relates to us. God doesn’t need to watch the weather predictions. He knows when storms are going to come into our lives- things that make us afraid. Things that make us panic and not think straight.

#1: How important it is for me to eat my daily “breakfast” of His Word even on days I have no expectation of a storm. His Word has the calming medicine I need to prepare me for the storms. If I never read His Word except when I’m already panicked, it will be harder to comprehend, harder to retain.

#2: In the midst of the scary seasons of life, listening to Christian music or even an audio Bible helps me focus on God more than my fear. It helps to lift the depression and despair that can set in when I only focus on the bad news. Now I’m not talking about just one or two songs but an almost constant backdrop of Christian music or the Bible… while eating breakfast, doing laundry, walking around the block, working (if possible), driving- even sleeping. Listening to this more than to our fears lifts our spirits and turns our focus back to Christ.

#3: I need to not run away from God in the scary times but snuggle right up next to Him- let Him wrap me snugly in His loving arms, comfort me even when I don’t understand what’s going on around me, press in close despite my fear.

#4: I need to rejoice with Him when He gets me through the storms. And I need to remember prior storms He’s gotten me through, thanking Him in advance that He will never leave me or forsake me no matter what fearful days come.

Lord Jesus, help us to press in close to You whatever storm of life is raging around us right now. Keep our minds and hearts fixed on You, bring us peace and comfort and an assurance that You will never leave us or forsake us. Amen.