Here I Stand Arms Open Wide

Storms Happen!

Mark 4:35-41

"That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, 'Let us go over to the other side.' Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, 'Teacher, don't you care if we drown?' He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

This excerpt came from Stu's sermon at Waters Edge Church on 4/11/2010:

"Storms happen! Doesn't matter if you're good or bad, strong or weak, believer or unbeliever, Christ follower or not, going in the right direction or the wrong direction. Storms happen. And here's the thing, when storms happen, our senses scream, our emotions yell. I mean that's what happened for these disciples...everything around them says focus on the storm. Focus on the storm because you're all alone. Focus on the storm because nobody's ever had it this bad. Focus on the storm because the storm demands your attention. The storm says focus on me...The storm creates an illusion that says, focus on me! Give me your attention! Make me your priority! Put me front and center!"

Stu continued to make the point that though storms may come, they WILL end. No storm will last forever. There is an ending point to all storms. What is important is what you focus on during that storm. Do you focus on the storm and wallow in your sadness and depression? Or do you focus on the Savior? Stu referred back to the scripture in Mark which said Jesus was found sleeping on a cushion in the middle of this horrific storm. WHY WAS HE SLEEPING? Well, because His trust was in God the Father to protect Him and watch over Him. In the same way, we are called to trust in our Savior to calm our storms. Focus on Him and He will be your comfort when you feel burdened by the weight of the storm. Focus on Him because He will give you strength to endure the storm. Focus on Him because He will guide you through the steps to emerge from the storm. Focus on the Savior, not the storm. For the storm is an illusion telling you that you will not survive. The Savior is the reality, telling you He will get you through anything.

Scary, but Beautiful

I was awaken at 5am this morning and looked at the window to see flashes of light streaming in through the blinds. I emerged from my bed to find its source and saw a huge lightning storm approaching my house. I gazed in awe at the lightning bolts that stretched from the heavens to the earth. I was astounded with their brightness and their expanse across the sky. It was beautiful and it reminded me of a Psalm that I have been memorizing this week.

"O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens...
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place..."

I had never seen lightning like this in years. As I stood there staring out my window, the storm began to get closer. The slight rumbles of thunder started to sound more often and slightly louder. The lightning bolts were getting closer and closer to my house. It started to rain. The beauty which I was just captivated with now started to scare me. That lightning, though beautiful, also held such enormous amount of destructive power and I feared it would strike a tree or house nearby. This paradox left me deep in thought. The lightning was both scary and beautiful. It made me think about my life. It's truly scary at times. When I look at certain situations and circumstances up close, they terrify me and I start to focus on the destructive powers those situations might have on my life. But at the same time, if I take a step back from my life and look at the whole picture, there is such beauty in it all. I start to see how God is using some of those scary situations for the better, and He is starting to mold new growth in areas where I use to only see destruction. God has the power to take the scary and make it beautiful if we only put our trust in Him and let Him take control of our lives. But it's also a matter of perspective. I can choose to stay narrow-visioned and pessimistic and see the areas of my life that scare me and threaten me as destructive....OR I can choose to take a step back from it all and see the good in it and see how God is using those areas of my life to better me and further His Kingdom. So if you find yourself in fear by a life circumstance, take another look and find the beauty in it all, because I promise you it's there if God is involved.