This past June, my family and I were settling down for bed in our fifth-wheel trailer that was parked in the parking lot at a church in Illinois for a youth gospel crusade we had scheduled for the week. A thunderstorm was raging outside and I was tracking it on my phone. This low pressure system, the weathermen said, had the potential to bring not only powerful storms, but could produce destructive tornados as well. When you live in a trailer, you pay special attention to that kind of thing. 

It was around 9pm when both of our phones began shrieking an alert that a tornado had been spotted and to seek shelter immediately. We scooped all four kids out of their beds into the van, drove across the parking lot, and camped out in the church basement as the storm increased its fury outside. Once I saw that the kids were safely tucked away, I found my way to an exterior window and watched the rain come down in sheets as the wind whipped in all directions and the water filled the parking lot like a lake. Once the storm had passed, we loaded back into the van, returned to the trailer, and tucked everyone in bed for the night. Honestly, I felt a little silly for relocating my family for what turned out to be nothing but rain and wind.

The next morning, I checked the news and was shocked to find out what had actually happened the night before—a tornado had indeed touched down nearby. A funnal cloud had landed several blocks to the west going due east. It destroyed trees, power lines, and homes as it shredded through a suburban neighborhood going straight toward our trailer. Somehow, however, like a skipping stone on a lake, just before it reached the church, the tornado skipped up into the air and leaped over the church property and touched down on the other side. I shudder to think of what would have happened to our home had it not jumped past the church property. We had narrowly avoided catastrophe from one of nature’s most common and yet very dangerous phenomena—the low pressure system.

Filling the Vacuum

In weather, a low pressure system is an atmospheric event that often brings with it storms, winds, and sometimes tornados. I don’t know all of the scientific reasons why, but these “vacuums” of nature tend to be filled in such a way that can leave destruction and ruin in their wake. Because of this, meteorologists keep a sharp eye out for the low pressure systems and often send out warnings when they are about to arrive so the people can be prepared. Low pressure systems can kill and destroy, as we nearly found out in Illinois.

As much as we need to be aware of the weather, there is another kind of low pressure system I’ve personally found in life that is much more subtle, but can be just as destructive. These low pressure systems drift into our lives just after the big test, an impossible deadline, a high pressure event, a difficult semester of school, a gripping youth conference or camp. These systems often descend on the weekend, on Christmas break, or any other time when the pressure is off. What kind of low-pressure system am I talking about? I’m talking about those times of life when you’re bored, when you feel like you have plenty of time to spare, when nothing is urgent, and you can just chill out and relax. These are the low pressure systems to watch out for.

It is in these seasons that we can allow the vacuum of “nothing urgent” to be filled with all sorts of things that wreck our spiritual lives—ungodly entertainment, selfishness, laziness, and much more. Just as the low pressure systems in nature can destroy homes and lives, so the low pressure systems in our lives can destroy hours, days, and even weeks of our lives if we let them. We justify a little worldly entertainment, because we have nothing to do. A little time-wasting here and there isn’t that big of a deal. We shift into a self-centered, self-gratifying perspective about our time and our decisions. Make no mistake, young person, these are the times that define your life and can also destroy it all at the same time. Consider yourself warned.

Surviving the Vacuum

So, if these low-pressure seasons are so dangerous, how do we prepare for them? I’ll give a few suggestions that have helped me when I’ve followed them:

• Spend extra time with the Lord. So you don’t have a lot going on? Perfect! Use the extra time and the lack of deadlines to spend extra time in secret with Jesus. Maybe take up an extra Bible reading challenge or purpose to journal with the Lord for an extra 15 minutes per day. Don’t neglect this opportunity to deepen your walk with God!
• Set daily goals. In your time with the Lord, ask Him for goals that He would have you to accomplish that day. Make them reasonable and attainable, but most importantly make them in coordination with the Lord! Having a God-directed purpose for your time will keep you from drifting and will keep you on mission.
• Invest in people. Especially during the holidays and at other low-pressure times of life when you are with family, it would be easy to drift into your own little world and ignore the people around you that ought to mean the most to you. Treasure these moments, have meaningful and intentional conversation with your siblings or your parents. Play a board game, look through old pictures, ask insightful questions about the past, and just enjoy each others’ company. Look for opportunities to show love and appreciation. You’ll be glad you did.
• Enjoy recreation in moderation. There’s nothing wrong with playing a little Uno or Catan, with riding bikes, playing football, or going on a hike. Sometimes it’s important to unwind during breaks, especially with loved ones. But be careful not to let an entertainment mindset dominate your mind or your days. Don’t live for the thrill; live for others and for the Lord! Recreation should be a means to spending time with others, not an end to gratify your flesh.
• Stay clean or get clean ASAP. There’s nothing worse that soiling your conscience during a time of rest and relaxation. Really, the best option is to refuse to hurt your conscience or to soil your hands with sin in the first place. However, if we do yield to temptation and indulge in doubtful things, don’t wait to get right until the break is over. Agree with God right away, confess the sin to Him, and put road blocks in your way so you can’t get back to them again. Don’t waste your whole break not being right with God!
• Serve others. Look for opportunities to be a blessing to those around you. Perhaps, volunteer to take our the trash, clean up the dishes, finish a home project that has lain dormant for years. Don’t sit around expecting to be served, serve others!

There is much more that could be said, but I really do believe if you’ll follow these simple suggestions during your season of low pressure, you can avoid peril and will, in fact, end your time victorious and grateful to the Lord for all that He did in your heart.