How to Keep Your Footing When the Waves Feel Too High

We have all been there.

You are cruising along through life, and suddenly, the wind changes. A health diagnosis blindsides you. A relationship you thought was solid begins to crumble. A financial crisis hits. Suddenly, you find yourself standing in the middle of a raging storm, and the waves feel absolutely too high to handle.

When life feels completely out of control, our natural human instinct is to frantically try and calm the storm. We exhaust ourselves trying to fix the unfixable, control the uncontrollable, and manipulate circumstances back into a state of safety.

But what if the goal isn’t to stop the storm? What if the goal is to find the anchor that holds you steady right in the middle of it?

In Chapter 6 of my book, we talk about faith not as a blind optimism that ignores the storm, but as a deliberate decision to trust God beyond what we can see. When Peter stepped out of the boat onto the raging Sea of Galilee, the storm didn’t suddenly stop. The wind was still howling, and the waves were still crashing around his ankles. Peter was able to do the impossible, not because the water suddenly became calm, but because his eyes were locked on Jesus instead of the storm.

“My fear collapses the moment I decide God gets the final word.”
— Lorrie L. Drennon, Holy Voids

When you feel like you are sinking, it is time to stop looking at the waves and start working through a practical, spiritual action plan. Here is a 4-step guide to keeping your footing, using the very roadmap we walk through in Holy Voids:

Step 1: Armor of God (Protect Your Mind From the Narrative)

The very first place a storm attacks you is not in your circumstances; it is in your mind. The moment the waves rise, fear starts whispering a narrative of defeat. “You aren’t going to survive this. God has forgotten about you. This is the end.”

If you try to fight those overwhelming thoughts with your own willpower or positive thinking, you will quickly find yourself underwater. You cannot fight a spiritual battle with natural strength.

To keep your footing, you have to pick up and put on the external protection God has provided for you. You need the helmet of salvation to protect your identity, the shield of faith to intercept the arrows of doubt, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, to actively push back against the lies. Stop analyzing the storm with your own logic, and start speaking God’s promises over your situation.

Step 2: Deliverer (Shift from Management to Surrender)

When the waves get high, we default to “manager mode.” We try to handle the crisis on our own. We stay up late mapping out scenarios, trying to figure out how we are going to rescue ourselves.

But holding onto control when you are in a storm is like trying to hold onto a handful of water. It just slips through your fingers and leaves you feeling more anxious.

The turning point in any crisis comes when we stop trying to be our own savior and acknowledge who the true Deliverer is. Freedom doesn’t come when we grip the wheel tighter; it comes when we actively open our hands and surrender the outcome to Him. You don’t have to figure out how to calm the sea. You just have to trust the One who can walk right on top of it.

“Freedom didn’t come when I resisted harder, it came when I surrendered deeper.”
— Lorrie L. Drennon, Holy Voids

Step 3: Lord (Decide Who Gets the Final Say)

It is easy to call Jesus “Lord” when the sun is shining and the water is smooth. It is an entirely different story when you are staring down a wave that threatens to sweep you away.

In seasons of crisis, the storm tries to establish itself as the lord of your life. It demands all of your attention. It dictates your mood, controls your sleep, and commands your focus.

Declaring Jesus as Lord in the middle of a storm means you are deciding that the circumstances do not get the final word in your life. You are choosing to believe that God’s character is more real than your current crisis. It means looking at the towering wave in front of you and saying, “You are big, but my God is bigger, and I belong to Him.”

Step 4: Navigator (Trust the Guide Even When the Path is Hidden)

One of the scariest parts of navigating the unknown is that you cannot see where you are going. The storm creates a thick fog of confusion, and you might feel like you are just wandering aimlessly in the dark.

But Scripture reminds us that we are not required to see the whole path; we are just required to trust the Guide.

A master navigator doesn’t need to see the destination to steer the ship; they just need to look at the compass and follow the true north. When your vision is blurred by tears or panic, do not make permanent decisions based on temporary waves. Stay close to the Word, listen for His still, small voice, and trust that He is guiding your steps even when you cannot see the shore.

“When we cannot trace His hand, we can still trust His heart.”
— Charles Spurgeon

You weren’t designed to carry the weight of the storm on your own. Let’s stop exhausting ourselves trying to be the savior of our own lives. Grab your copy of Holy Voids or to be the first to know when it officially releases to the world, join my social media community today!