You would have laughed at me. In fact, I laughed at myself. I was sitting on our front porch studying what the Bible has to say about thunder. Suddenly the largest crack of thunder I have ever heard in my life sounded right next to me! Before I was even conscious of what I was doing, I had dropped everything and was standing with both hands in the air looking around. It got my attention to say the least.

We have had an inordinate amount of strong thunderstorms this year. They can be frightening and impressive at the same time. But there is more…they make us think about God.

Scripture speaks frequently of thunder. There is a theology to thunder.

• Thunder is always connected to the throne. (Revelation 4:5, 6:1, 8:5, 11:19, 14:2, 19:6, etc.)
• Thunder is an illustration of the powerful voice of God. Psalm 29:3-5 says,

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is upon many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars; yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.

• Thunder is spoken of my the psalmist as the Lord’s response to the prayer of the distressed (Psalm 18:6-15). We think our enemies are strong and God declares that He is stronger! Psalm 81:7 reinforces this truth, “Thou calledst in trouble, and I delivered thee; I answered thee in the secret place of thunder.” (It is of note that Job spoke a great deal about thunder in the book that details the trials of his faith.)

Thunder is to be a reminder of the Creator, the One who is over all. Here are a few thoughts that I have had about thunder in the last few weeks, thoughts that have made me think more of God…

1. Thunder makes you look up. It is a sound from above. There is a God who sits on His throne above us. He sees us and holds the whole world in His mighty hand.
2. Thunder says there is something behind the clouds. There is movement that you cannot see. Clouds are on the move and rain is coming! When God begins to speak in your life it is evidence that there is more to come. He is at work in ways you may not understand.
3. Thunder is evidence of power. Where there is thunder there is lightning. Our God is a God of all power.
4. Thunder is the sound of warning or blessing depending on your relationship to it. For the farmer who is praying for rain it is an answer. For the wicked man on the run from God it is a fearful thing. In the first mention of thunder in Exodus 9 it is a picture of judgment. You don’t have to fear the thunder if you know the God of the thunder!

Thunder shakes everything. It causes normal life to pause even if just for a moment. The next time the thunder surprises you see it as God’s voice, and a reminder of His power and presence in your life. Like the God of thunder, you cannot see it

“The heavens declare the glory of God;  and the firmament sheweth his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1).