Jesus is Master of the Storm

 Good Evening Everyone!

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       I hope everyone is having a wonderful evening. I had originally planned to write another post tomorrow, but the Lord prompted me to write another post. Let me ask you a question. Have you ever been in a spiritual storm before and didn't know what to do and felt like everything was out of control? You're probably saying, well of course. Okay, have you ever felt like it was overwhelming and you wanted to throw in the towel? I will admit, I most definitely have. Life's storms can take a toll on people and be very overwhelming at times. There's a story in the Bible that I want to share a revelation with you and that I am learning right now. Let's dive into it!

  We are going to Matthew chapter 14 verses 22 through 33. Now I am going to paraphrase this story. Jesus tells His disciples to get into a boat and go on ahead of Him and He would meet them on the other side. So the disciples do exactly as He tells them, meanwhile Jesus is up on the mountain top praying while they are heading to the other side. Later that night as the disciples were sailing across the water to get to the other side, a storm pops up. They're trying to get to where Jesus was going to meet them, but the wind is pushing the boat back and the waves are crashing into the boat. Now as you can imagine, the disciples were probably in complete panic and trying to do everything that they could possibly do to keep the boat from collapsing. Right before the sun came up, Jesus went to them walking on the water. So they had been on the water for at least a few hours before Jesus showed up. As Jesus was walking on the water, the disciples looked up and cried out, "It's a ghost!" Jesus spoke to them saying, "Take courage, it is I, don't be afraid." Then Peter said, "Lord, if it is You, then tell me to come to You on the water." So Jesus said, "Come." Peter steps out of the boat and starts walking on the water. As Peter is walking toward Jesus, he notices the wind and becomes afraid and starts drowning. Jesus reaches out His hand and grabs him and pulls him up. Jesus said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 

   Now I want you to notice something, the disciples did what they were told to do. This wasn't their first time being in a storm, the last time they were in a storm, Jesus was in the boat. They knew He was in the boat, they could see Him and when the waves got a little rough and a storm started raging, they ran to Him for comfort. However this time, they were not with Jesus. Their faith was being tested. It wasn't just about Peter's faith, it was about all of the disciple's faith. Jesus gave them instructions, they were obedient and did what they were told, but when the storm came, they panicked. Jesus wasn't there, how were they going to make it to the other side to meet Jesus? Even though He wasn't physically there, He was with them in the Spirit and they had to trust what He said. His words were, "I will meet you on the other side." They didn't know they were going to have to face a storm in the process of trying to get to the other side. All they knew was that Jesus said, "I will meet you on the other side." 

    Can I tell you something, He does the same thing with us. He gives us a promise or an instruction and we are obedient and do it, but during the process, we face storms in life that will sometimes make us doubt or panic. God doesn't always give us all the details, He tells us what to do and then we have to trust Him that He will get us to the other side. We may not be able to hear Him, feel Him, or see Him, but we have to trust Him and what He said He will do. I know it's easier said than done, but He will test our faith from time to time to see if we will trust Him even in the midst of the storm. 

    So my question to not only you, but also to myself is will we trust Him? Will we trust what His word says? Will we stand on His word while He fights our battles? Will we continue to pray and seek His face even though the storm is getting rough and scary at times? He knows we are in life right now and He knows what each one of us is facing. He is not blind or deaf to our storms whether it be pain, struggle, mountain or valley? He is with us in our highest points and in our lowest points. He loves us all the same and He said that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Tests aren't fun, but they are necessary. They prove whether or not we can move on or we need to learn a bit more in that area just like in school. If we learn from Him, He will help us pass our tests. Friends, I want to encourage you to keep moving forward even if it's hard right now. Even if you really don't feel like it and you want to throw in the towel, He might throw it back at you and tell you to keep going, I'm not letting you quit. I pray that the Lord blesses and keeps you and that you will be encouraged! Until next time!