Have you ever been in a situation where you didn’t know how to respond or further, how you should even feel regarding said situation? I remember when my family and I moved to Nebraska. One of the first church events I was a part of was Vacation Bible School (a weeklong event for kids). It was the first night and there were kids everywhere. I think we had about 300 kids at our campus that night. Everyone was working to get checked in so kids, parents, and staff members were moving about helping everyone get where they needed to be.
In the midst of the chaos, I heard an unfamiliar sound. It was a siren that I would soon find out was a tornado siren. We didn’t have those in the south, so I had no idea what I was supposed to do in such a situation. To add to my internal confusion, there seemed to be two camps of people. The first group was frantically working to be anywhere else. They were asking questions about shelters and emergency plans. Safety seemed to be their top priority. The second group of people were quite comfortable being outside and began scanning the horizon hoping to see the hypothetical tornado.
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In the midst of the confusion, my campus pastor walked by and I asked him plainly, “Can you tell me the level of concern I am supposed to be feeling in this situation?” He kind of laughed at the question and helped me understand what was happening. What I would learn later is that a true Midwesterner is in the group that remained in the parking lot. Tornado sirens actually seem to be more like invitations to a block party than a warning to find shelter. Eventually, the sirens stopped, the tornado warning passed, and we proceeded with our plans.
Over the last few years, I have gotten way more comfortable in those situations. I am now the guy that goes outside to look for tornadoes when I hear the sirens. I have still (thankfully I guess) never seen one.
Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation? In life, our relationships, our jobs, and so on, there are plenty of times when we feel like we’ve been thrown into the deep end of the pool before we’ve taken our first swimming lesson. For me, I would have preferred my first tornado siren experience to be in a situation where I was only responsible for myself while in the company of others who have experienced such a situation. Perhaps a weekly staff meeting could have been the perfect scenario. Even better, I would have learned about it in the official “How to be a Midwesterner” manual that they hand out at the DMV. It would be right under the section titled “Oh, you thought you loved ranch?*”
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Unfortunately, that’s not how life works and all we can do in those deep-end-of-the-pool moments is stay afloat, learn from it, and be better prepared for next time. The easiest way to guarantee success in these moments is to lean into the wisdom of those who have been there before. When that siren went off, my first instinct was not to run for shelter or to find the best viewing angle. My first instinct was to find someone who had seen this before and who could help me navigate the situation. When we attempt to face the unknown alone, we tend to fumble through it, make more mistakes, and get hurt along the way. But when we seek the wisdom of others, we can run farther and faster, while minimizing potential mistakes.
Too often the leftover angst from my two-year-old self rises up within me and screams, “I can do it myself!” And I, like the two-year-old version of me, proceed forward in the clumsiest and least efficient way possible.
Proverbs 15:22 tells us that “plans fail for lack of counsel but with many advisors, they succeed.” It’s true that life is full of unexpected moments that can leave us feeling disoriented and unsure and the unexpected can be daunting. But my first tornado siren experience reminded me that seeking counsel and wisdom from those who have gone before us can be invaluable in navigating these times.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help or seek advice from those who are a little farther down the road than you are. Embrace the wisdom of others, learn from their mistakes, and use the knowledge to move forward with confidence and strength. When we lean into the guidance of those who have been there before, we can face the unknown or unexpected with greater courage and conviction. And at the end of it all, maybe you’ll get to enjoy one of those tornado block parties!
*As much as you thought you loved ranch dressings and dips, you’ll never love ranch like a Midwesterner loves ranch. Trust me on this.
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