God is with You in the Storm
Matthew
7:24-27
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
The first thing this scripture reminds me of is the children’s
song, “The Wise Man Built His House Upon the Rock”, I’m singing it in my head
now, it is a catchy little tune. You're singing it now too aren't you? Haha!
The second thing this scripture makes me think about are the storms we go through in life. After all of my years reading and studying the bible, I have yet to
find a scripture that says once you accept Christ as your savior you become
exempt from all difficulties. But, what I have found is that I am truly never
alone. When the storms of life come and I begin to react to them, God is there
to guide me in my thoughts, my words and my actions. Do I listen to him every
time? No. I have, however, become more mature in my relationship with him and I
listen better now than I did when I was a baby Christian.
Joyce Meyer has a great saying,” I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I’m not where I use to be.” I love how true this is. I am sincerely thankful for all of the lessons I learned over the years. And even though some of them have been more difficult than others I am praising God I learned them and I am not in the same place I was many years ago.
There is a peace that only God can give to us. This peace can only be found by having a deep intimate relationship with Him. I know so many of us go through things we think no one understands, or we question why we are going through at all and I hear people ask all the time how can God let such terrible things happen to such good people? I have even asked that question myself. I could preach a sermon on it, but unless you really want to trust God and have a relationship with him, and your question is to help you put your faith back in God, instead of finding a reason to confirm your disbelief, then why answer it?
I highly recommend watching the film/documentary "Unstoppable” by Kirk Cameron. He does a great job answering this question for most. I have had my share of heartache in life. Satan has attacked my marriage, my children, my-extended family with everything from health, to drug addiction, to divorce and more. I have known what it is like to be rich and to be poor. I have been depressed to the point of suicidal thoughts. I have been verbally attacked by loved ones, non-believers, believers, friends and acquaintances. I have had my own personal health scares and I have lost more loved ones that I care to think of to disease, overdose, car accidents and more. Some of them were old and lived long good lives and some of them young and we felt like they were taken way too soon.
I do not pretend to understand fully what others go through because I am not them. I only know what I have faced and what God has brought me through. The only reason I share my personal testimony and numerous heartaches is that by doing so someone going through their own storms and battles would be inspired by my faith and then look to Jesus for themselves for hope that only He can give.
When I step outside of my own thoughts and my own ways and I begin to try to look at it from God’s perspective, an eternal perspective that has His entire creation in mind not just mine, I really can see how all things work together for the good of those who put their trust and hope in the Lord. This is certainly harder during the bigger storms of life but still doable. I have seen the brutal storm of death caused by months of disease and suffering bring families together and build their bonds stronger and tighter than they had ever been before. I have seen new lasting relationships form and grow and prosper when faced with coming together to fight for a loved ones addiction. Yes I see God. I have seen my own personal growth in sympathy and empathy through trips to the hospital while being pricked with needles and having blood drawn and then impatiently waiting for test results and diagnosis. God is there. He is in all of it. Working out the perfect plan that He has designed that we will only see if we are looking for Him.
The storms of life are real and they are not going anywhere. As long as we are on this earth we will face them. However if we choose to build our life on Jesus, the Rock of our faith, then when the storms do come we will not sink but we will prevail. We may get our knees scraped up when we stumble onto the rock but we can be guaranteed that we won't suffocate by the sand beneath. Walk in peace knowing that God is with you in the storm.
Joyce Meyer has a great saying,” I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I’m not where I use to be.” I love how true this is. I am sincerely thankful for all of the lessons I learned over the years. And even though some of them have been more difficult than others I am praising God I learned them and I am not in the same place I was many years ago.
There is a peace that only God can give to us. This peace can only be found by having a deep intimate relationship with Him. I know so many of us go through things we think no one understands, or we question why we are going through at all and I hear people ask all the time how can God let such terrible things happen to such good people? I have even asked that question myself. I could preach a sermon on it, but unless you really want to trust God and have a relationship with him, and your question is to help you put your faith back in God, instead of finding a reason to confirm your disbelief, then why answer it?
I highly recommend watching the film/documentary "Unstoppable” by Kirk Cameron. He does a great job answering this question for most. I have had my share of heartache in life. Satan has attacked my marriage, my children, my-extended family with everything from health, to drug addiction, to divorce and more. I have known what it is like to be rich and to be poor. I have been depressed to the point of suicidal thoughts. I have been verbally attacked by loved ones, non-believers, believers, friends and acquaintances. I have had my own personal health scares and I have lost more loved ones that I care to think of to disease, overdose, car accidents and more. Some of them were old and lived long good lives and some of them young and we felt like they were taken way too soon.
I do not pretend to understand fully what others go through because I am not them. I only know what I have faced and what God has brought me through. The only reason I share my personal testimony and numerous heartaches is that by doing so someone going through their own storms and battles would be inspired by my faith and then look to Jesus for themselves for hope that only He can give.
When I step outside of my own thoughts and my own ways and I begin to try to look at it from God’s perspective, an eternal perspective that has His entire creation in mind not just mine, I really can see how all things work together for the good of those who put their trust and hope in the Lord. This is certainly harder during the bigger storms of life but still doable. I have seen the brutal storm of death caused by months of disease and suffering bring families together and build their bonds stronger and tighter than they had ever been before. I have seen new lasting relationships form and grow and prosper when faced with coming together to fight for a loved ones addiction. Yes I see God. I have seen my own personal growth in sympathy and empathy through trips to the hospital while being pricked with needles and having blood drawn and then impatiently waiting for test results and diagnosis. God is there. He is in all of it. Working out the perfect plan that He has designed that we will only see if we are looking for Him.
The storms of life are real and they are not going anywhere. As long as we are on this earth we will face them. However if we choose to build our life on Jesus, the Rock of our faith, then when the storms do come we will not sink but we will prevail. We may get our knees scraped up when we stumble onto the rock but we can be guaranteed that we won't suffocate by the sand beneath. Walk in peace knowing that God is with you in the storm.
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