Above.

Last week, I attended a work conference in San Diego. While the weather SHOULD have been enjoyable from all the reports I’d been given, it was far from such. It was windy. It was rainy. It was chilly. All until the day I left to fly home.

When I left San Diego to begin the trek home, the weather outside of my room was calm. Quiet. Peaceful. Enjoyable. All of the things I THOUGHT it was going to be during my quick trip there that restricted me to (1) the conference center and (2) my room at the resort.

Once I arrived at the airport, I was greeted with a message from my airline that my flight to Denver had been delayed for about an hour. It wasn’t because of lack of staff or anything that has made airlines the talk of the town in the past few months. It was because of a big winter storm. Travel conditions were not safe and everything in Denver was taking longer due to the heavy snow, ice, wind and 20 degree temperatures. I grabbed a hot caramel latte and sat down with my book.

After some reading in the airport and on the plane, we landed in Denver. The first text I received when I went off of airplane mode was that my connecting flight had been cancelled. Already scheduled for a three-hour layover, I would now be hanging out for an extra two-and-a-half hours and adding touchdowns in two additional states before making it back to my home state. It was chilly in that airport that day, but a quick glance out the window made the delays more than explainable.

STORMS.

They impair our visibility.

They threaten our safety.

They cripple us with fear.

They cause us to retreat.

They cause us to overreact.

They cause us to trust in others to know we are going to make it through. Maybe it’s the airline crew who has been trained to handle situations like this. Maybe it’s your local meteorologist (in my home State, he’s quite the legend!). Maybe it’s your faith in The One who holds it all – the storm AND you. Sometimes we need a reminder that (1) we WILL make it through, (2) we are NOT alone, and (3) it WILL NOT always look this way.

Just a few hours later (well, about six), the impaired visibility from the incessant snow disappeared and this was the view out of my window. Isn’t it beautiful? Peaceful. Bright. Calm. ABOVE. From this view…..quite a bit higher than the first photo, the perspective is completely different. That’s what happens when we allow ourselves to rise ABOVE the storms.

That process is not easy. It’s not quick. It often involves other people. It often involves surrender. It often involves pressing through the turbulence. Trust me, friend. There is Light above the storms. You will be able to have a different view. You are not alone.

ABOVE.