Five Things to Do in a Storm

In Matthew 14:30 I read, “But when [Peter] saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” (NIV)

I must remember that when I’m going through a storm, God is not distant or uninvolved. He is with me, and working in my life for my good.

If I feel like I’m sinking in a storm, here are five things God wants me to do:

1). Have courage, because Jesus is with me. Don’t ever argue with fear. Just tell it where to go! Tell it to go talk to Jesus.

2). Take a risk in faith. Don’t ask God to bless what I’m doing. Instead, do what God is blessing. Ask him what he wants me to do, and then be willing to do it with him.

3). Stay focused on Jesus. The moment I take my eyes off the Lord, I’m going under. Matthew 14:30 says, “But when [Peter] saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’”  (NIV). If I focus on the wind and the waves, my circumstances, I’m going to sink, just like Peter.

4). Don’t doubt. I don’t need great faith to make it through the storm in my life. I just need faith in the right person, Jesus Christ.

5). Praise God. Even in the storm, even when I feel like I’m sinking, even when I’m scared to death, praise him all the time. Thank God in the middle of the storm.

I should consider what storm is scaring or sinking me? Why do I think God is letting me go through this storm?

He’s letting me go through this storm for the same reasons he sent the disciples into the storm. He wants me to know: “He’s all I’ll ever need. I can handle anything. And he’ll come walking on the very thing that scares me the most. He’s not asking me to come to him. He’s going to come to me.”

If I feel like I’m sinking today, don’t fear. Just call out to Jesus. I’ll find he’s with me.

In summary, when I’m afraid and feel myself beginning to sink, like Peter, cry out to Jesus to save me. When I’m going through a storm, God is not distant or uninvolved. He is with me, and working in my life for my good. When I feel like I’m sinking, here are five things God wants me to do: 1). Have courage, Jesus is with me. Don’t argue with fear. 2). Take a risk in faith. Don’t ask God to bless what I’m doing. Instead, do what God is blessing. Ask him what he wants me to do, then be willing to do it with him. 3). Stay focused on Jesus. The moment I take my eyes off the Lord, I’m going under. If I focus on the wind and the waves, my circumstances, I’m going to sink. 4). Don’t doubt. I don’t need great faith. I just need faith in the right person, Jesus Christ. 5). Praise God. Even in the storm. Thank God in the middle of the storm. If I’m experiencing a storm, why do I think God is letting me go through this? I’m going through it for the same reasons he sent the disciples into the storm. He wants me to know: “He’s all I’ll ever need. He’ll come walking on the very thing that scares me the most. He’s not asking me to come to him. He’s going to come to me.” If I feel like I’m sinking, don’t fear. Just call out to Jesus. I’ll find he’s with me.

Peter started to sink because he took his eyes off of Jesus and focused on the high waves around him. His faith wavered when he realized what he was doing. I won't ever walk on water, but I will walk through tough situations. If I focus on the waves of difficult circumstances around me without looking to Jesus for help, I, too, may despair and begin to sink. To maintain my faith when situations are difficult, focus on Jesus' power rather than on my own inadequacies.  

Although I start out with good intentions, my faith sometimes falters. This doesn't mean I have failed. When Peter's faith faltered, he reached out to Christ. When I'm apprehensive about the troubles around me and doubt Christ's presence or ability to help, remember that he is always with me and is the only one who can really help.

Father I ask you for wisdom and guidance for my day, my work, my leadership, my interactions with others, my future job role and leading a small group. I pray these things in your Son Jesus’ name, Amen.

 

Jesus Comes to Me in My Storm

In Mark 6:48 I ready, “About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water.” (NLT)

I’ve had storms blow my life off course. In Mark 6, Jesus sent the disciples ahead of him to Bethsaida while he went off by himself to pray. It wasn’t a long trip by boat, but they were blown off course by a storm. When Jesus saw them struggling against the wind in the middle of the lake, he came to their aid.

Is my life today feeling like the disciples?

Maybe I had no intention of being where I am in my job, relationships, or finances. I’ve been blown off course by situations I couldn’t control. I feel like I should be at my original destination by now, but at this point I’ve given up hope of getting there. I just want to get back to safety.

Or perhaps I had big dreams for my life that I gave up on a long time ago. I’m not even worried about progress anymore. I’m just wondering, “Can I survive?”

What does Jesus do when I’m at my moment of desperation? Mark 6:48 says, “About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water” (NLT). Notice that he didn’t tell the disciples to come to him. He knew they couldn’t get to him. So he went to them instead. The same is true for me. When I’m at my point of desperation, Jesus comes to me!

I love the fact that Jesus did not stand on the shore and shout instructions. When I’m in a storm, I don’t need advice. I need a miracle! I need somebody to show up, and that’s what Jesus did. He intervened in the disciples’ storm.

This is the Gospel: God doesn’t stand on the shoreline telling me what to do; instead, he comes out and meets me in my own storm, my own pain, fear, depression, and discouragement. He comes to me. What a God!

I may feel abandoned right now, but I’m not. The Bible says in John 14:18, “I will not abandon you or leave you as orphans in the storm—I will come to you” (TLB). I can count on it!

In summary, in the disciples' time of need, Jesus came toward them, walking on the water.” Like the disciples experienced, I’ve had storms blow my life off course. Maybe I had no intention of being where I am in my situation. I’ve been blown off course by things I couldn’t control. I feel like I should be at my original destination by now, but at this point I’ve given up hope of getting there. I just want to get back to safety. Or perhaps I had big dreams for my life that I gave up on a long time ago. I’m not even worried about progress. I’m just wondering, “Can I survive?” What does Jesus do when I’m at my moment of desperation? He didn’t tell the disciples to come to him. He knew they couldn’t get to him. So he went to them. The same is true for me. When I’m at my point of desperation, Jesus comes to me! Jesus does not stand on the shore and shout instructions. When I’m in a storm, I don’t need advice. I need a miracle! I need somebody to show up, and that’s what Jesus did. He intervened in the disciples’ storm and will intervene in mine as well. I may feel abandoned, but I’m not.

I need to consider if my heart is hardened against Jesus? I can be informed about what his Word says, and I can be amazed at how he has worked in other people's lives, but refuse to believe he will come to my aid in my time of trouble. This is a hard-hearted rejection of Christ's ability to help. Instead, "take courage," and trust that he is there for me. If I ask, Jesus will come to me.  Father, I ask Jesus to come to me in my frustration over my current job role. I know it will come to an end in a few months, but I need your miracle to put me into the role you have for me. Meanwhile, I’ll need to be patient. I ask you Father for wisdom and guidance for my day, my work, my leadership, my interaction with others, my future job role and leading the small group well. These things I pray in your Son Jesus’ name, Amen.

Because God Says So

In Luke 5:4-5 I read, “When [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’” (NIV)

As a follower of Jesus, he expects me to obey whatever he tells me to do, even if it appears foolish to other people, even if it doesn’t make sense financially, and even if I don’t understand it and am scared to death.

Luke 5:4-5 says, “When [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets’” (NIV).

Jesus had stepped into Simon Peter’s boat. But he didn’t stop there. He also started giving this professional fisherman instructions on how to fish!

Notice Peter’s reaction. He didn’t argue with Jesus. He didn’t say, “Excuse me, Lord. You’re a carpenter. I’m a fisherman. And those fish aren’t biting! Who are you to tell me how to do my job?”

And he didn’t hesitate. When Jesus told him to launch the boat, he didn’t say, “Why don’t we think about this for a minute? Let’s form a committee and vote on it” or “We’re pretty dirty and tired here, Lord. How about we try again this afternoon?”

What did Peter do? He responded to Jesus with unquestioned obedience.

Disobedience will always hurt me because I miss God’s blessing.

But if I become a “because God says so” man, I’ll get to experience all of his blessings. His instructions do not have to make sense to me. When God says so, I just need to do it, trusting him in faith.

I can trust God because he always has my best interests in mind, even if I can’t see it right away.

In summary, when Jesus asks me to do something I need to do it, because he says so. As a follower of Jesus, he expects me to obey whatever he tells me to do, even if it appears foolish to others, even if it doesn’t make sense financially, and even if I don’t understand it and or I’m scared to death about it. Jesus had stepped into Simon Peter’s boat. But he didn’t stop there. He also started giving this professional fisherman instructions on how to fish! Peter didn’t argue. He didn’t say, “Excuse me, you’re a carpenter. I’m a fisherman. Those fish aren’t biting! Who are you to tell me how to do my job? He didn’t hesitate or say, “why don’t we think about this”, or “let’s form a committee and vote on it” or “we’re pretty dirty and tired here, how about we try later. Instead he responded to Jesus with unquestioned obedience. Disobedience will always hurt me because I miss God’s blessing. If I become a “because God says so” man, I’ll get to experience all of his blessings. His instructions do not have to make sense to me at the time. When God says so, I just need to do it, trusting him in faith. I can trust God because he always has my best interests in mind, even if I can’t see it right away.

Peter’s example gives me something to learn from. I often tend to question or put off things that Jesus tells me to do. What’s really clear today is missing the blessings that come from my disobedience. Father, with the help of your Holy Spirit within me, I want to become a “yes” man. Father I ask for wisdom and guidance for my day, my work, my leadership and my interactions with others. I ask these things through your Son Jesus’ name, Amen.

  

Who Controls My Career?

In Matthew 6:33 I read,  “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” (NLT)

If I want my life to turn from emptiness to overflowing, then give Jesus complete control of my life, including my career.

An example of this is when Simon Peter let Jesus get into his boat so he could teach some people standing on the shore. The Bible says, “When [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon [Peter], ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets’” (Luke 5:4-5 NIV).

Then the Bible says, “When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink” (Luke 5:6-7 NIV).

If I want my life to turn from emptiness to overflowing, I’ve got to get Jesus in my boat.

My boat is how I make a living. Simon’s business was his boat because he was a fisherman. The boat represents my career, my profession, my job, just like it represented Simon Peter’s entire livelihood.

To have Jesus in my boat means I dedicate my career to God. I’m not talking about salvation here. I may have Jesus in my life, but have I given him control of my career?

I’ve trusted him for salvation and serve faithfully in my church. But when I go back to work during the week, is Jesus who I trust in my job? Or do I put Jesus on the shelf?

When Simon Peter gave his job to Jesus, he was blessed with incredible results. But don’t miss the sequence. We sometimes think, “God, make me really successful in business, and then I’ll serve you with the success.” Wrong! It’s the exact opposite. Peter first gave Jesus control of his job. Then Jesus blessed Peter’s job with enormous success. That’s the order.

The Bible says in Matthew 6:33, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need” (NLT).

When I want God to bless something, I put him first in that area. If I want God to bless my time, then I need to give him the first part of every day. If I want God to bless my money, then I give him the first 10 percent of my income, no matter how small it is. If I want God to bless my job, then give him control, no matter how successful I am.

Get Jesus in my boat, and I’ll see my life turn from empty to overflowing.

In summary, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give me everything I need.” If I want my life to turn from emptiness to overflowing, then give Jesus complete control of my life, including my career. If I want my life to turn from emptiness to overflowing, I’ve got to get Jesus in my boat. My boat is how I make a living. The boat represents my career, my profession, my job. To have Jesus in my boat means I dedicate my career to God. I may have Jesus in my life, but have I given him control of my career? But when I go to work, is Jesus who I trust in my job, or do I put Him on the shelf? Peter first gave Jesus control of his job, then Jesus blessed Peter’s job with enormous success. That’s the order. When I want God to bless something, I put him first in that area. If I want God to bless my time, then I need to give him the first part of every day. If I want God to bless my money, then I give him the first 10 percent of my income. If I want God to bless my job, then give him control, no matter how successful I am. When I get Jesus in my boat, I’ll see my life turn from empty to overflowing.

To "seek the Kingdom of God above all else'' means to put God first in my life, to fill my thoughts with his desires, to take his character for my pattern, and to serve and obey him in everything. What is really important to me? People, objects, goals, and other desires all compete for priority. Any of these can quickly become most important to me if I don't actively choose to give God first place in every area of my life. I’m pretty sure that I don’t give Jesus control of my career and work. I ask for wisdom and guidance but don’t completely turn it over. I think if I gave control to Jesus, I would be even more helpful and courteous. I really don’t have anything to fear. It’s just a matter of letting Jesus be my model and the character I strive for. I’d like God to bless my career, especially in the next steps for my future job role. So just like giving God the best part of my money and the first part of my day, I will give my work to him.  Father I ask for wisdom and guidance for my next job role/career and for leading the small group. These things I pray in your Son Jesus’ name, Amen.