Storm clouds and strong gusts of wind had come up suddenly over Columbus, Ohio. The Alpine Elementary School radio blared tornado warnings. It was too dangerous to send the children home. Instead they were taken to the basement, where the children huddled together in fear.
The teachers were worried too. To help ease the tension the principle suggested a sing-along. But the voices were weak and unenthusiastic. Child after child began to cry—we could not calm them.
Then a teacher, whose faith seemed equal to any emergency, whispered to the child closest to her, “Aren’t you forgetting something Kathie? There is a power greater than the storm that will protect us. Just say to yourself, ‘God is with me now.’ Then pass the words on to the child next to you.”
As these words were whispered from child to child, a sense of peace settled over the group. I could hear the wind outside blowing with the same ferocity as before, but it didn’t seem to matter.
Inside, fear subsided and tears faded away. When the all-clear signal came over the radio, students and staff returned to their classrooms.
Through the years I have remembered those calming words. In times of stress and trouble, I have been able to find release from fear or tension by repeating, “God is with me now.” ~ Phyllis I. Martin
(Posts with a preamble asterisk * are for a more general audience, and not specific to teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.)
