Have you ever been blown away by unexpected storms in life? I’m currently in a season that finds me in the trenches of mothering young kids, behind a thousand to-dos to release my first book, and under piles upon piles of laundry. I’m so entrenched with what is right in front of me that I have found myself *blissfully* unaware of other storms brewing.

Such was the case a few weekends ago. With bags packed for my annual college girls’ trip and the first leg of the trip behind me, I found myself with a rare and peaceful moment of being undisturbed. Sitting comfortably in a lounge at the Atlanta airport, my phone started pinging, I had nearly 50 missed messages, which all came flooding in from the other girlfriends making their trips: “my flight is cancelled because of the hurricane” “my kid’s schools are cancelled “delayed flight and I missed my connection.” Confused I wondered what hurricane? I googled “what hurricane is hitting the United States?”  Yes, I admit I had no clue Hurricane Helene was barreling toward the Gulf until it started to disrupt my plans.  Obviously, I quickly became very aware and now we all see the devastation this storm brought to a whole region.

I can only imagine for those directly impacted by Hurricane Helene, September 27, 2024, will go down as a day of infamy. As with so many first responders and military families, another day in September holds the weight of memory. September 11, 2001 is forever etched as a day of profound loss, bravery, and resilience. For many, including the man who would later become my husband, Nelson, it began a long journey of combat rotations, service, and sacrifice. Nelson was among the first to be sent to Afghanistan in 2001. As recounted in my upcoming book, Recalibrated, the intensity of those initial weeks left lifelong marks on his body and soul.

Eleven years ago, another storm caught me off guard— a storm that ravaged my life like a hurricane and could have left me and my marriage like a twisted piece of steel. Just days after my white wedding to a Special Forces officer my new husband started to display symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), emotional and verbal abuse. Both our worlds crumbled. Every paradigm we knew shattered and every place of comfort was removed, leaving us grappling for truth. We broke. We would have remained broken had we not allowed the Almighty to prune us, change us, and recalibrate our hearts. Spoiler alert: we did not stay broken!

Thankfully, I serve a God that does not want to pursue the person I’ve created myself to be, but the one He created and called into life.  He will relentlessly pursue His creation and allows circumstances in our lives to tear down the walls of false-security and false-self.  If we resist this process by running to other false securities, we will live in bondage and remain stuck.

Oswald Chambers in My Utmost for His Highest repeatedly admonishes his readers that it is in the valley where we are tested and approved workmen of the Lord. It is in the valley where we are refined, where our heart of stone is replaced with a heart of flesh. Too often it is in the ravines that we give up and turn back.  But if we cling to the promises and names of God, He will lead you and guide you into the light.

Through trials, being sifted and refined, I now feel called to strengthen my brothers and sisters with the same hope and comfort I received. In the pages of Recalibrated, I open my heart, my journal, our broken but redeemed lives, so you too may know there is a God that sees, a God that hears, and a God that loves.

In Joshua 4, Joshua commanded each tribe of Israel to carry a stone of remembrance across the Jordan river to be use as a marker in the new land of where they had come from and to remember the God they served.

Before deploying to Afghanistan in November 2001, members of the FDNY and NYPD gave the A-Team a piece of the World Trade Center to carry and bury in memorial. In a solemn moment of honor, these men (Nelson in the center) laid the twisted piece of steel, a fragment of 9/11’s destruction, to rest in the dust of Kandahar. It’s a tribute to the lives lost on that fateful day, to those who would fall in the wars that followed, and to those who bear the unseen burdens of service.

Like the stones the Israelites carried and the piece of the World Trade Center, Recalibrated, is my stone of remembrance—a marker of what once was, and the unshakeable power of faith, hope, and love.

My prayer is that all those suffering from the hurricanes, those struggling in their own deserts, or walking alongside a loved one who is, will choose their own stones that will declare the goodness of God in the land of the living.  So, when our children ask, “what do these stones mean?” we will be ready to share the wonders of our God.

Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts; let them proclaim your power. I will meditate on your majestic, glorious splendor and your wonderful miracles. Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue; I will proclaim your greatness. Everyone will share the story of your wonderful goodness; they will sing with joy about your righteousness. (Psalm 145: 4-7, NLT)

―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

Book Launch for Recalibrated!

November 7, 6:30pm
Virginia War Memorial Ballroom
Anne and Nelson Smith will be hosting a book launch and discussing Veterans, PTSD, Hope & Faith!
A very special guest (hint: she endorsed the book) will be joining the conversation.
Free, but please Register!