It was a warm, humid day in early August five years ago; several heavy thunderstorms had already rolled through the area where I live, and more were expected. I live less than two miles from Lake Michigan, and it is not unusual for strong winds and storms to sweep across the lake often over the course of the year. This particular afternoon, one storm picked up tremendous speed and force, and it hit the Michigan coastline with straight-line winds estimated at ninety to a hundred miles an hour. My town was directly in its path. 

Thousands of trees were blown over, and power lines went down in a tangled mess, leaving roads impassable and hundreds of homes without power. Six trees had fallen on my roof, and dozens more on my property. I will be forever grateful that my adult children, who were visiting at the time, and I were unharmed. In fact, we all immediately turned to God in prayer, acknowledging His presence, protection, and authority and listening for direction as to where we should begin the cleanup.

Each one of us is always at home—and forever insured—in the arms of our Father-Mother God.