Prayer in the Face of the Storm
A letter to members of The Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina, in advance of Hurricane Dorian.
Beloved in Christ,
Although we don’t yet know the impact it will have on our lives, it seems increasingly clear that Hurricane Dorian will pass along the shores of eastern North Carolina, perhaps even making landfall. Forecasters warn us of the possibility of life-threatening floods. Some voices have encouraged us to hope for the best but plan for the worst. By now, many in Dorian’s path will already have evacuated their homes or will at least have prepared their homes to sustain the pounding of wind and water. For most of us, this is not our first hurricane. Many in eastern North Carolina have yet to fully recover from Hurricanes Florence and/or Matthew.
And so I write to call you to prayer, and to assure you of my own prayers and of my promise for the active response that will proceed from those prayers. In the face of a hurricane like Dorian, it is a natural inclination to pray that God might turn the storm away from our shores. For some people of faith, such language comes naturally. For others of us, such language is difficult, even offensive. Do we really think that, by the power of our prayers, we can change the path of a storm? Do we really think that God is waiting until enough of us pray the proper words before turning the storm aside?
Let me suggest another way to pray. Beginning in the early thirties, theologian Reinhold Niebuhr was credited with including in his preaching variations of this prayer:
“God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, Courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other.”
In the pattern of this prayer, popularized through twelve step movements like Alcoholics Anonymous, the focus rests in being open to the possibility of change in one’s own being rather than relying only in the possibility of change in those things beyond our own control.
The hours and days ahead will reveal to us the full impact of this coming storm. There will be a great need for courage in our response to neighbors in need. Whether it will be in support of Bahamian neighbors or of those who live right across the street from us, there will be many opportunities for us to actively engage in the work of rescue, relief and recovery. Perhaps we will even need courage to face the impact of the storm on our own lives. We will need wisdom, or at least clarity, in order to distinguish between those things we can and cannot change, and we will most certainly need an abundance of serenity, or peace, as we are confronted by realities beyond our control. Anxiety, fear and stress, natural responses in these circumstances, will only make worse the very real and practical challenges that we may face.
So pray that God might protect us from the storm, certainly. But also pray for the serenity, courage and wisdom that you will need in order to face that which waits for us in the days and years ahead.
Yours in the courage, wisdom and peace of Christ,
P.S. For practical resources to assist with hurricane preparedness and response, please visit East Carolina’s “Hurricane Hub” at https://www.ecdio.org/hurricane-hub.html
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