In Matthew 8:23-27 it says this to us: "Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. Then the disciples came to Him and awoke Him saying, 'Lord, save us! We are perishing!' But He said to them, 'Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?' Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men marveled, saying,' Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?'"Can you see their faces, can you see their fears in the midst of this storm? And for them to see Jesus asleep, what must they have thought? Have you too been there as they were, in fear, seeing the waves coming, the boat rocking, the sea raging against you? How many times I have been on that boat, with little faith, and fearful of the waves crashing in on me. Fearful of what is happening, and what can happen. There are things in our lives we have no control over, so why do we give in to such fears that only make our situations seem even worse than they are? For me, I think some of that fear comes from letting go, letting go of the control I think I have, but as I look to Jesus, as I look to His power and might, He is the One with the control over my life. Nothing touches me that doesn't touch Him first. There are those times when He stops the waves from crashing and calms our fears, but there are also those times in which He allow the waves to keep crashing, but even though, for whatever reason it might be, He is there with us, with each wave that hits, and He is holding on to us such a way that that wave is not going to take us under no matter how much we feel the water rising above us. Jesus calmed the fears that day with the disciples, as He calmed the waves. They were amazed, they were marveled as it says, but why is it that we are always so amazed when He does calm the sea or calm us in the midst of a storm? We are always so amazed that He did something, but why? He is God, He is our Savior, He is the Creator, we should never be amazed at His greatness, but in awe of Him, having respect for Him,with no doubts, showing our love for Him, our praise for His glory. He is God, what else would He do but calm His children and the storms we face daily? He is the One we can turn to and know without a doubt that He is there, He is right there with us. There is no fear in Jesus, there is no doubt in Him, but there is praise and there is security in Him. There are many things I do not know, many I do not understand, and I am so thankful to be learning new things each day, to be gaining wisdom and knowledge of Him, of myself, but the One thing I do know is that He loves me, and He will never leave me in a storm to fend for myself, He will never leave me in the dark, for His light shines and always makes a way. If anything we have a God who allows us to ride those waves with a new found faith and grace. He gives us all we need to make it through, and for me, when I do make it through, I am amazed that He was there and He moved on my behalf, but again, what else would He do for His child? He didn't create us to let us go, to let us fend for ourselves, just as when we were children we knew our parents were there to care for us, to love us, and to protect us, He is our Father in heaven! What a great and wonderful feeling to know there is a God who is with us, even when our faith is not so great, maybe a little weak from the storms we have faced, but even through our fears He shows Himself mighty and awesome. Maybe there are those times I feel as though I am amazed, because I wonder, "Why would He do that for me?" But an answer with assurance always comes back to say,"Because I love you, daughter!" There is nothing we can face today that is too great for our God. No storm too big for Him. If He created the winds and waves, He has the power to control them. For me, I just have to give up my fears, give up my doubts, and let go of the control I think I have and realize my life is better off in His hands. He knows my past, my present and my future, so wherever He is calling me to go, whatever He has for my life, whatever He allows to touch me, I know it is for my best. I may not understand all the storms, I may want them to end, I may not want to face them, but I know if not now, later He will show me the glory that came from all that touched my life. He will give me the strength to face all, and with His arms around me there is nothing to fear.
Psalm 46:10 "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."
