Finding God in the storm

Everywhere I have looked lately, there is something else that is bad. There are riots, murder, so much hatred, so many people hurting, disease, and death all around. There are people I know going through suffering that is beyond imaginable, and there are people in my life who just want to hurt me. While going through so much, it's easy to forget about God, and to put my faith aside. It's easy to blame God, to yell at Him, and wonder where He is through every storm of life.

The silver lining in the bad is that He is always with us. He is always loving us. He is there to get us through the storms, and there to be a source of strength. Staying close to Him through the hard times is not easy, but it helps. It helps to pray, even though the words may be hard. Sometimes tears are better and more effective then any words that we could say. Sometimes it helps to spend time in prayer in the peace of a church or in front of the Blessed Sacrament. I've been using songs as a way to pray. There are so many songs that are meant to touch our hearts, and help us in hard times. Some find Him through the love and support of others. God puts people in our lives to help us, to support us, to change us, and to love us. There is no mistake when He puts someone in our lives. Some find God in the beauty of creation.

I'm sure that many don't think about forgiving others when they are going through so much. There always seems to be someone to blame, or even something. But God is waiting for us to forgive others. That is a way to ease our burdens, and heal our hearts.

Life is short, and even though the storms of life can seem long, they are a time to learn, to remain strong, to stay close to God and realize that He is always with us, always loving us, and always faithful. It may be hard to remember to pray, to have faith, to praise God for the small things, and to allow God to heal us in the hard times, but we need to. He will never forsake us. I have spent time wondering where the end is to tbe bad, but I know that there is hope, and that everything that happens is all God's will.