Recently, bad storms affected the area where I live. Before they hit, newscasters reported on the havoc the day’s storms brought to communities just north of where I live, along with the prediction rough weather would soon be banging on my front door. Early that morning, strong winds began howling back and forth, but all else was quiet from this major front.
Hour after hour passed, and it looked like this storm might be a lot of talk but little action. Shortly after lunch, however, thunder and torrential rain finally caught up with the winds. The experts, while they weren’t certain exactly when the storms would be here, in their minds there was no question regarding the if.
This all reminds me of life in general. Often, we can’t nail down the exact day or hour when difficulties might raise their ugly heads, but there’s no question challenges are coming at some point in our lives. The Marketplace Chaplains USA founder likes to say this: “Everyone has just experienced a problem, is experiencing one right now or will be in the near future.”
Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world, you will have trouble.” Job, who went through intense suffering, said, “Man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). So we can’t avoid trouble. Insurance can’t protect us from the certainty of some sleepless nights. We can’t put enough best practices and safeguards into place to ward off all troubles. Some problems are just going to find a way to get through to us and tamper even with the best laid plans.
But everything is not a loss even in the darkest storms. Scripture also tells us in James 1:2-4, “A time to trouble tests our faith and develops perseverance.” We need the darkness to appreciate the light.
If we’re personally fortunate enough to be racking up a long string of successful days and nights with nary any bumps or bruises along the way, we all know someone — a spouse, a child, a parent, a sibling, an aunt or uncle, best friend, co-worker or next door neighbor — who is struggling right this moment with some affliction in his/her life. And so that person’s hurts and pains become our struggles and our concerns.
Ten years ago when our chaplains started going through the turnstiles and gates at numerous petrochemical plants to care for employees, I secretly wondered how much good we could really bring. Big, macho guys in hard hats and steel-toed boots were the most unlikely of candidates to open up and share. However, over this past decade I have been amazed to see how easily not only the words but also the tears have flowed through countless conversations. I’ve been reminded no one is too tough or too strong to not occasionally be in need of a tender, listening ear.
On this stormy day as I was working out of my home and the thunder grew louder by the minute, I gathered a few “essentials” I knew would help Buddy, our family’s 50-pound standard schnauzer, weather this storm. While Buddy likes to act like a macho dog when it comes to guarding our house or our kids, a seasonal shower sends shivers up his spine. And so my wife and daughters convinced me to buy him a thunder jacket. Crazy, I know, but it works! So I strapped him in that and put a leash on him so I could keep him by my side, and his anxiety and fears eventually subsided. Buddy reminds me no matter how tough one may appear on the outside, even if all he ever seems to do is growl and bare sharp teeth, we all have some fears, worries, concerns or anxieties. And it’s nice to have someone to come alongside us and whisper quietly, “Don’t worry. I’m here.”
As you look around at your colleagues today, maybe it seems like everything is rosy or maybe you know a few of them are going through a rough patch of turbulence. Just remember, there is no substitute for someone coming alongside and offering a helpful hand or a listening ear. And if we can ever help, our nearly 3,000 chaplains with Marketplace Chaplains USA are here to join you as you extend some tender loving care.
Brian Horner is the Gulf Coast Division director of Marketplace Chaplains USA, which is an organization that provides workplace chaplains to corporate America.
For more information, visit www.mchapusa.com or call (800) 775-7657.
