I am thankful for the surface of the storm. It tells me I really am not drowning, God is in control, God has purpose, God will unfold His purpose and give His total provision through it all. For me, for you..................
Forty days and nights of rain -- constant, unending, pelting rain. Forty minutes of rain, constant, darkening my world, disrupting my immediate plans, will slow me down on the road, thankfully, and have me wondering how I will ever get my groceries into the house, or wrap me up on the couch wondering if we will have to put up with it all day. And Noah’s rain came in mighty torrents from the sky, while the waters of the underground burst forth like great fountains, and the floods that followed covered everything. But Noah and his wife, his three sons, and their wives, rode on the surface of the storm. They knew and understood its severity. They heard the wind and felt the sometimes tumultuous rocking of their boat. They shared their temporary home with a full menagerie of animals while thoughts of the destruction of lives and life left them wondering what their own world would hold for them if and when God opened the very doors He had shut that were keeping them safe, The family rode on the surface of the storm. God had led them. God had provided. God was still providing. God had enclosed them to fulfill His purposes and His plan. He gave them His presence and He never forgot them. He had promises to keep and He fulfilled every one. And in God’s time, Noah and his family, and even his menagerie, left the boat to walk on dry ground, and to keep on walking to fulfill the purposes God had.
The disciples rode the surface of the storm on the Sea of Galilee, notoriously known for its sudden squalls. And this one was fierce, waves heaving themselves over the sides of the boat, fear mounting in the hearts of the disciples with every howl of the wind. And the God who promised His presence was sleeping soundly in their midst, asleep, but not unaware. We are sometimes quicker to rebuke the disciples than Jesus was, but I am reminded that their fear spoke of their reality, and even in their threatening situation, they still knew who was sleeping in their midst, and their little faith expressed its dependence on Him.
I can’t tell you how small my faith can seem in the middle of the storm, questioning who I am, how quickly will I succumb to the storm’s fury, what will splinter with the waves, is it even possible for light to break through the darkness??? And the whisper comes softly in the howling wind, I am here. You may think I am sleeping, but I am fully aware of your turmoil. I am greater than your storm, and I only ask for your little faith to express your dependence on Me. God’s whisper quiets my heart although I know I will still need to hear it again because storms can last for a season, and I long to live out all the truth in my head that went to my heart a long time ago, but in the storm I long for the vibrancy of God’s presence and embrace, and I am thankful for the surface of the storm. It tells me I really am not drowning, God is in control, God has purpose, God will unfold His purpose and give His total provision through it all. For me, for you..................
(Related Bible reading: Matthew 8:23-27)
Forty days and nights of rain -- constant, unending, pelting rain. Forty minutes of rain, constant, darkening my world, disrupting my immediate plans, will slow me down on the road, thankfully, and have me wondering how I will ever get my groceries into the house, or wrap me up on the couch wondering if we will have to put up with it all day. And Noah’s rain came in mighty torrents from the sky, while the waters of the underground burst forth like great fountains, and the floods that followed covered everything. But Noah and his wife, his three sons, and their wives, rode on the surface of the storm. They knew and understood its severity. They heard the wind and felt the sometimes tumultuous rocking of their boat. They shared their temporary home with a full menagerie of animals while thoughts of the destruction of lives and life left them wondering what their own world would hold for them if and when God opened the very doors He had shut that were keeping them safe, The family rode on the surface of the storm. God had led them. God had provided. God was still providing. God had enclosed them to fulfill His purposes and His plan. He gave them His presence and He never forgot them. He had promises to keep and He fulfilled every one. And in God’s time, Noah and his family, and even his menagerie, left the boat to walk on dry ground, and to keep on walking to fulfill the purposes God had.
The disciples rode the surface of the storm on the Sea of Galilee, notoriously known for its sudden squalls. And this one was fierce, waves heaving themselves over the sides of the boat, fear mounting in the hearts of the disciples with every howl of the wind. And the God who promised His presence was sleeping soundly in their midst, asleep, but not unaware. We are sometimes quicker to rebuke the disciples than Jesus was, but I am reminded that their fear spoke of their reality, and even in their threatening situation, they still knew who was sleeping in their midst, and their little faith expressed its dependence on Him.
I can’t tell you how small my faith can seem in the middle of the storm, questioning who I am, how quickly will I succumb to the storm’s fury, what will splinter with the waves, is it even possible for light to break through the darkness??? And the whisper comes softly in the howling wind, I am here. You may think I am sleeping, but I am fully aware of your turmoil. I am greater than your storm, and I only ask for your little faith to express your dependence on Me. God’s whisper quiets my heart although I know I will still need to hear it again because storms can last for a season, and I long to live out all the truth in my head that went to my heart a long time ago, but in the storm I long for the vibrancy of God’s presence and embrace, and I am thankful for the surface of the storm. It tells me I really am not drowning, God is in control, God has purpose, God will unfold His purpose and give His total provision through it all. For me, for you..................
(Related Bible reading: Matthew 8:23-27)
