Tag: storms of life

Posted in FAITH, GOD IS WITH YOU, Safe with Jesus, Uplifting Christ

Your Victory Over Storms

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?

(Mark 4:40, NLT)
  • The Story (Mark 4:35-41)

Jesus told his disciples that “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake”. There was a starting point and a destination. They jumped on a boat with Jesus and started their journey. But soon a fierce storm came up. The scripture says “High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water” v37. And the disciples thought that they were going to be consumed by the fierce storm. The interesting part of the story is that, in the midst of the fierce storm, “Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion” v38.

How could you sleep when we are drowning?

The disciples were overwhelmed by the event so they rushed to Jesus shouting “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” v38. 
In other words (my own) “how could you sleep when we are downing? Don’t you see, feel, sense, etc that we are going to die?”

Sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we thought “God! where are you? Don’t You see that we are going to drown?”

But in the midst of this, Jesus woke up and rebuked the wind and there was a great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”v40.

  • The Lesson

God has promised you a future; that is your vision, dream, aspiration, etc. He placed them in you and equipped you for the task. It looks great at the start and you are excited about it. However, what you have no knowledge about is the kind of storm that awaits you.

The course of life isn’t straight. There are curves, valleys, hills, potholes, thunderstorms, turbulence, high currents, waves, tides, etc along the course. In effect, whichever way or form your course might be, there are obstacles or limitations that would appear to make you feel that your mission is impossible.

One lesson you can learn from the passage is that Jesus Christ didn’t quit. He woke up, and as calm as you could imagine, rebuked the storm and continued the journey.  

The storm you see today is waiting for the demonstration of your Faith to cease. Many times we wait for God to (sort of) appear in the flesh and take us through when in reality God is rather waiting for us to use the tools He has given to us already. His angels are waiting for us to command them to work.

From the passage, while the disciples thought Jesus has got the solution for the storm, Jesus on the other hand thought they could have handled it. Thus “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

Could it be that you are the reason why your storms keep staring at (or threatening) you daily? because you are waiting for God? Well, God is with you. He is the reason why you haven’t drowned yet. He is waiting for you to use your Faith.

You may ask; how do I use my Faith?

What can you do now about the situation? Can you fast and pray? can you place the first phone call? can you make the first visit? can you obey the constant voice you are hearing? can you take the first step moving forward? These are acts of Faith. Can you give yourself one more try? Don’t be afraid to act because your miracle is in your obedience to His Word.

Posted in Easter, Safe with Jesus, TRUST IN THE LORD, Uplifting Christ

Perfect Peace in Troubled Times

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

(Isaiah 26:3, NLT)
Storms of Life are inevitable

Isaiah 26:3 is one of the scriptures we can turn to when storms of Life rage. We can’t skip storms. This lead to my grouping of storms into Micro-Storms and Macro-Storms.

Micro are storms that come to individual lives. More like person specific issues you and I have to deal with. On the other hand, Macro storms affect a nation and sometimes the world.

As a child of God, storms aren’t meant to destroy you but to test your FAITH in your God. It helps you to rethink your thoughts and position in God. And often they draw you closer to God.

In recent times, world leaders demonstrated their military capabilities. Russia boasted about it’s hypersonic nuclear missile, NATO talked about it’s military buildup, Turkey’s decision to buy S-400 missile from Russia, and The US signed $738 billion defense bill.

Russia S-400

However, the reality we face is beyond nuclear missiles, fighter jets, bombers, etc. Here is unseen virus terrorizing good and bad people, rich and poor, civilians and military. If this virus could be nuked, it would have been dead and gone. This means that we can’t put our absolute TRUST in military strength.

When focus is shifted to Health Care System, UK is undoubtedly one of the leading countries providing better care for it’s citizens yet unanswered questions surrounding this virus and its transmission have locked the country down. Even Prime Minister Boris Johnson had to go through intensive care. Finally, over 8000 souls lost. There is fear and panic not only in the UK but EU, US, African, and the rest of the world.

Photo credit: nhs.uk

If we pull Science on the stage, One would have also thought that with the current level of technology and shared information, Scientists would take days or few weeks to come up with some sort of vaccine. But what we heard was that it would take up to a year to make vaccines available.
Although there is race among countries, big pharms, and institutions to develop vaccines, people are terrorized by the rate of infections and death.

Finally, there are blame games and attacks on WHO, the organisation we thought could provide answers to mysteries surrounding the kind of lifestyle…social distance, wash your hands with soap, hand sanitizers, face masks, don’t touch your face, etc. One would wonder if WHO is autonomous in policies and decision making?

In this troubled time, we can rely on Jesus’ words before his arrest and crucifixion. He said

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

(John 16:33)

Jesus slept in the midst of storm because He knew the storm wasn’t meant to destroy them. Besides, He had control over the storm. He had perfect peace. In the same way, If we can shift our thoughts from worries and Focus on God, cementing our Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and Trust in His Word, regardless of our military strength, health care system, money in account, high level of unemployment, recession, etc we will have Perfect Peace.

It’s okay to be aware or informed about developments in your country and the world but don’t let that scare you. Be focused and Guard what you believe. When you are settled from within that GOD, your Father is in control, there would be nothing to worry about. And truly there is nothing to worry about. KEEP CALM.

Posted in believe, GOD CARES, SOUL FOOD, Uplifting Christ

DON’T STOP ASKING

Posted on by Uplifting Christ

Storms of life are inevitable and they come in diverse ways. Personally, I wish they aren’t part of the package so that life journey could just be series of predictable events. The reality however is that You have something to deal with, and I have my share to handle.

Photo credit:
https://www.michaelberg.net/articles/choosing-straight-path

Everyday has it’s huddles which is why you have to learn to live one day at a time. No carry forwards if you want to enjoy your life as well as deal with issues that matter for the day.

The year is still young but it’s tempting to overburden yourself with unmet needs, desires, goals, and maybe some unanswered prayer request(s). It’s depressing to listen to someone’s testimony and kind of wonder if God is keeping it real with you. I hear people testify daily, see the joy, smiles, and hear laughter of happiness at the other side of the phone. This is another reality we face each day but it doesn’t mean we should worry, or cry, or even doubt God because things aren’t happening according to our schedules. It means that we can Trust God that He is able to sort us out when the time is right.

Photo Credit: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/240450067579053889/

In Psalm 37:18-19 (NLT), the psalmist said “Day by day the Lord takes care of the innocent, and they will receive an inheritance that last forever. They not be disgraced in hard time; even in famine they will have more than enough.”

God is taking care of you right now. One thing you may not know is that those who shared their testimonies with you also had to deal with the same emotions, thoughts, etc during their waiting period. I know dozens of people who complained, cried, doubted, didn’t want to pray again, etc during their waiting period but in the end, when their needs were met, they looked back and laughed.

Some day, not too far from now, you will also look back and say Thank You Lord. Your testimony will surpass anything you would ever imagine because your God is Big. In the meantime, don’t fret. Keep Asking, Keep Seeking, and Keep Knocking. When you take the first letter of Asking, Seeking, and Knocking, you get the word ASK. Therefore don’t STOP ASKING.