Post # 2306008

Author: Robert Ott

Posted: June 12, 2023

In September of 1989 I was on a business trip in Jacksonville, Florida. Hurricane Hugo was barreling up the east coast toward North Carolina and the whole coastal area was under an evacuation warning. I have never been an alarmist and usually have the attitude that everything will turn out fine. I lived in Florida when I was a child and had experienced strong storms and even a hurricane. I was not a novice. 

But this was different. When I was leaving the oceanfront hotel and storing my luggage in the rental car, I noticed that everything was eerily quiet. There were no cars, no people, no squawking seagulls in the sky. There was no sound of rustling palm fronds, no wind or breeze, just perfect stillness. I glanced back over my shoulder and looked toward the ocean. What I saw was the most ominous black sky I had ever seen. It was frightening.

There was something overwhelmingly powerful about that sight over the ocean. Something I had never experienced before. Something so huge and powerful that it was mesmerizing. It was almost as if it were drawing me to it. So, I walked toward the beach, stood there alone on the retaining wall and faced this incredible force of raw power created by the forces of nature. 

The seawall on which I was standing was ten feet tall. Churning, swirling waves of water were crashing against the seawall just two feet below me. Where there had once been a wide sand beach, maybe an eighth of a mile, there was now an ocean of water. The beach was gone. Standing there looking out across the wide expanse of mountainous waves of water, I just could not grasp how the power of the  hurricane, centered a few hundred miles out into the Atlantic, could drive an entire ocean toward the shore to a depth of over twenty feet. 

I do not know how long I stood there, but I do know all I could think about was the raging and ferocious power of God on display. My mind and spirit were transported, and I felt almost at one with the Holy Spirit’s power. It was overwhelming and awe-inspiring. I choked-up, weeping tears of worship of my God. How could this all-powerful God love me so much that he would come as a human being to this earth he created and give himself as a sacrifice for my salvation? 

I can say, like the apostle Paul in Romans 7:24 NKJV: 

O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

And like King David said in Psalm 8:3-5, 9 NIV:

When I consider your heavens,

           the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

           which you have set in place,

what is mankind that you are mindful of them,

           human beings that you care for them?

You have made them a little lower than the angels

           and crowned them with glory and honor. . . 

Lord, our Lord,

           how majestic is your name in all the earth!

And the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 40:12 NLT:

Who has held the oceans in his hand?

Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers?

Who else knows the weight of the earth or has weighed the mountains and the hills on a scale?

This was an experience that expanded my view of God, and brought home the realization of just how small I really am. What I also realize is that spiritual experiences often occur in our lives. We are just not aware of them. The Bible is very clear that our spiritual eyes can be blind and our spiritual ears can be deaf, which can lead to isolation and lack of intimacy.  Jesus himself said in Matthew 13:13-14, 16 NLT:

“This is why I use these parables, for they look, but they don’t see. They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand. This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend’ . . . But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear.”

Moreover, our isolation and lack of intimacy with others can potentially leave us spiritually immature and weak, unable to discern God’s presence all around us. Intimate relationships with others can help us discern God's presence and work in our lives. Through shared experiences, conversations, and insights, we can gain different perspectives and receive encouragement and confirmation of God's activity. Without these interactions, we may struggle to recognize or interpret God's presence in and around our lives.

While isolation and lack of intimacy with others can have these negative effects, it is important to note that God's presence is not limited by our circumstances. Even in times of isolation, we can still cultivate a personal relationship with God through prayer, meditation, and studying the scripture. God's presence can be experienced and discerned individually, but the communal aspect of spirituality remains significant for our growth and understanding of God's work and power in the world.

Obviously, this particular spiritual experience of hurricane Hugo was monumental for me, but spiritual experiences do not always have to be hurricanes. My prayer is that we will continue to open our eyes and ears to the Holy Spirit, so we may experience the powerful presence of God in and all around us.