SCRIPTURE: Luke 8:22-25
How could Jesus sleep in that little boat, during a storm?
How could Jesus rebuke the storm, to make it stop?
Are these things that we could do too, if we had faith?
It was faith (resting in God) that enabled Jesus to be calm through the storm.
He knew God had a plan for Him, for them, and that no storm could stop that plan.
We can have this faith too; nothing can hinder God’s good purpose for us!
As for calming a storm, I am not sure that we will do this.
And yet, if we responded to our storms like Jesus – rebuking them instead of bowing down in fear to them – maybe we would see them calmed as well.
How we respond to storms has a huge impact on how they affect us.
“Instead of telling God how big your storm is, tell your storm how big your God is!”
I can’t promise that rebuking your storm will end it, but it will remind you of Who really is in charge, and enable you to be calm in the midst of it.
Wait and see, you may be surprised what God does through your faith!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
God, right now I am in a storm. I am fearing it, not rebuking it. Remind me again how BIG You are, and how nothing can separate me from Your love and purpose!
Norm– I read your comments after I wrote that … Oops. Looks like I said the same thing. Perhaps we have had conversations about fear before? 🙂
I am looking at this passage with new eyes today. I have wrestled with this in the past thinking that if I didn’t rebuke the storms in my life then I wasnt a good enough Christian and didn’t have enough faith and that lead to feeling down and beating myself up AND being in the midst of a storm. In re-reading though, it looks like Jesus is saying “where is your faith — did you forget that I am with you”? And then HE rebuked the storm. He didn’t say “why didn’t you rebuke the storm and let me sleep?”. I think He was admonishing their panic and not their lack of faith to calm the storm themselves. Elsewhere Jesus said “you will speak to mountains and they will move”, but here I feel a HUGE reminder to stay calm — be still and know that He is God! Maybe rebuking storms ourselves, in the name of Jesus, is helpful in allowing us to stay calm as we remind ourselves of the greatness of our God. Thank you God for revealing new things, for Your comforting reminders and for Your never ending patience!