We’re all quite familiar with tornado season here in the Midwest. As the weather begins to change from cold to warm, it’s not uncommon to have long nights of storms and tornado watches.

In many cases, those watches stay just that…but sometimes, they don’t.

If you have experienced a tornado in your life, you can almost feel the memory. As the sky turns from grey to green, your ‘spidey-senses’ start to tingle. It’s like you innately know what’s coming. The leaves turn over. The animals run into hiding, or sometimes go absolutely berserk. The air smells different. And all of a sudden, it gets really calm. Still, almost.

If you have experienced this during the daytime, you know these warning signs all too well. But the most destructive tornadoes tend to happen in the dead of night when all defenses are at rest.

There are tons of scientific explanations for why tornadoes happen: warm moist air near the ground rises to mix with cooler dry air that is falling, and that little dance causes a great big spin. But the key ingredient for a tornado is this: instability.

When we live in an atmosphere of instability, the conditions are always right for potentially life-altering storms. And if we don’t know how to be prepared for the ride, we can easily be swept up right into the vortex of swirling debris, often taking out our surrounding company.

Storms are guaranteed. They’re never going to stop. They can happen within the normal changing of seasons like they’re expected to. Or they can throw you for a wild loop and show up out of season, or in the complete darkness of night.

While we absolutely cannot control these storms, nor can we prevent them from bursting into our lives, our reaction to these storms is our choice—for better or for worse.

King Solomon said it best in Proverbs 4:23 “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

Guarding our hearts from a scriptural perspective means for us to be alert, through the power of Christ within us, to what enters and dwells in our hearts. We need to be aware of what we say and do, because over time, our thoughts and actions shape the status of our hearts.

There is a famous philosophical quote that says, “Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny.”

So, in order to prepare for the guaranteed tornado season of life, we must be aware of our habits. What kind of fruits do our habits produce? Do they mirror the fruits of the spirit, or do they produce anxiety, frustration, anger, or fear? When the vine is worldly, the fruit cannot be holy.

Don’t quit training, fellow warriors. Just like physical strength, the resilience of your heart can weaken in the absence of consistent and targeted workouts.

Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (emphasis added)

Are your heart and mind strong enough to face the next storm? Or will the tornadoes of life cause your house of faith to fall?

We look to the future, but we live in the present. Are we living by what we believe? Are we truly living by faith? Do you trust Him with everything, or do you find yourself making excuses over sacrifices?

1 Peter 5:8-9 says, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”

Our enemy is always waiting. Always watching. Always looking for that perfect atmosphere of instability.

And you better believe that if he sees an opportunity, he’s going to take it.