Have I already written about storms???
Storms are one of my favorite topics to teach and to talk about.
I am never able to look over the storms of my life without being taken back to the day that Jesus and the deciples were in the boat.
I always love the amplified version
Matthew 8:23 And after He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him.
24And [l]suddenly, behold, there arose a violent storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered up by the waves; but He was sleeping.
25And they went and awakened Him, saying, Lord, rescue and preserve us! We are perishing!
26And He said to them, Why are you timid and afraid, O you of little faith? Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great and wonderful calm (a perfect peaceableness).
27And the men were stunned with bewildered wonder and marveled, saying, What kind of Man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him!
It seems that of late I have been being taught many lessons from this situation including being given revelation on storms, faith, that boat or what I call the "B-Plan" or our security blanket, trust, Satan's plan for destruction and the fact that God is in control, He has not lost control, He will not lose control, no matter what the circumstances look like.
I was actually being taught these things by the Lord and happened around the same time to have heard a sermon by TD Jakes that was on the same topic, there are no coincidences. The name of the sermon was, "this is your last day on the boat ARISE!"
Listen to this!....Satan wishes to sift you
Luke 22:31Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan has asked excessively that [all of] you be given up to him [out of the power and keeping of God], that he might sift [all of] you like grain...
Your enemy is not one that does not know you. He has lived long enough to have met many like you. You are an individual and unique, but he knows YOUR weaknesses and the areas in which to tempt you specifically.
There's Hope....
32 But I have prayed especially for you [Peter], that your [own] faith may not fail; and when you yourself have turned again, strengthen and establish your brethren.
I love that Jesus says, "again" which says to me that first of all He knows that we don't get it right the first time or sometimes, the second or third or fourth time, but He says not "if" you turn again, but "WHEN" you turn again. When, When, When...! We will turn again..
The time is come that we do away with the B-plan. Time to release that safety net or the security blanket. In the boat is where we were before, but now stepping out on faith. Once even blessed in the boat, but now to the matter of walking on water!
Metaphorically this explains our journey with God. There's so much faith and believing and trust. We will, "walk where our feet have not tread before".
The new plan...To let go of the boat and not look back, not taking our eyes off of Him.
I also think about what Jesus told Simon (Peter), that he would deny Him three times but Peter denied that this would even happen. Even with the best intentions, and wanting so badly to live blamelessly and perfectly before Him never ever turning back, but the truth is if this were possible there would be no need for sanctification (the school of the Holy Spirit) and there would be no need for a savior. He knew that we couldn't live like this apart from Him.
We're harder on ourselves than He is on us. He has more patience with you than you have for yourself. That's why there is so much emphasis on getting ourselves out of the way. His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts He is gentler than even you are. He is perfect love, that's something that we can't and don't understand. Stop hating yourself and torturing yourself for not being perfect.
"When things got really bad and I mean really really bad", they had led Jesus away and the end was beginning. The beginning of the torture and abuse was beginning at this time and Peter had actuallly denied Him three times like Jesus said that he would, on the last time Jesus looked at him.
61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter recalled the Lord's words, how He had told him, Before the cock crows today, you will deny Me thrice.
62And he went out and wept bitterly [that is, with painfully moving grief].
Jesus looked at him. I have a friend, Roger, who tells me that at this time when the Lord looked at Peter he can just imagine the love in his eyes. He knew how much Peter would hurt. We serve a Lord who understands us. He knows us better than the enemy and makes provisions and grace enough for our needs. He knows that you won't get it right everytime and some of the times He's going to allow you to go through a storm, so that you can see for yourself your weaknesses that the enemy would come after. He also allows you to see them so that you know that this is what God is coming after in your life.
In my own recent storm, I have seen my weaknesses, I know what needs to be surrendered, I know where the enemy would work on me and I know where God is working.
I don't have to be afraid that I'll mess up beyond the point of recovery, He is in control. He has allowed the storm for the reason of working in my life and helping me to see. Many times people pray to be delivered from painful situations or difficult circumstances, I used to. That's one area that I know that I've matured in and I even get excited at the opportunity to learn more how to trust and rely on Him and excited to see what we're going to work on in my life. He is so interested in everything that concerns us.
There is no time in which we are too far gone. There is no time that it is too much.
He loves us.
Back to my story.....When things got so bad, just like in our lives when things get so bad and we feel like we're being sifted as grain and everything is stirring and swirling like a storm and we feel helpless to be able to make any changes oftentimes, we do what Peter did......John 21:3Simon Peter said to them, I am going fishing! They said to him, And we are coming with you! So they went out and got into the boat, and throughout that night they caught nothing.
We say..I go a fishing. We go back to those things that we're comfortable with in our old life. Our old reliefs our old skills or things that give us relief from the storm when things get too tough. What are those things for you? As TD Jakes put it, "How do you spell relief".
So in conclusion, I don't know if there's a major point that I'm trying to get across other than it's not too far gone. It's not beyond Him, it isn't even outside of Him. He is in control. He is the head of all principalities both in heaven and in earth and let Him work. Ask Him to show you what you need to see in your storm, ask him to teach you what you need to learn to mature and grow.
Until next time.....let go of the boat.
Happy Easter! He is Risen!! Wendy
Psalm 78:26He let forth the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by His power He guided the south wind.
Ephesians 3:10[The purpose is] that through the church the complicated, many-sided wisdom of God in all its infinite variety and innumerable aspects might now be made known to the angelic rulers and authorities (principalities and powers) in the heavenly sphere.
1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be so deceived and misled! Evil companionships (communion, associations) corrupt and deprave good manners and morals and character.
I am never able to look over the storms of my life without being taken back to the day that Jesus and the deciples were in the boat.
I always love the amplified version
Matthew 8:23 And after He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him.
24And [l]suddenly, behold, there arose a violent storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered up by the waves; but He was sleeping.
25And they went and awakened Him, saying, Lord, rescue and preserve us! We are perishing!
26And He said to them, Why are you timid and afraid, O you of little faith? Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great and wonderful calm (a perfect peaceableness).
27And the men were stunned with bewildered wonder and marveled, saying, What kind of Man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him!
It seems that of late I have been being taught many lessons from this situation including being given revelation on storms, faith, that boat or what I call the "B-Plan" or our security blanket, trust, Satan's plan for destruction and the fact that God is in control, He has not lost control, He will not lose control, no matter what the circumstances look like.
I was actually being taught these things by the Lord and happened around the same time to have heard a sermon by TD Jakes that was on the same topic, there are no coincidences. The name of the sermon was, "this is your last day on the boat ARISE!"
Listen to this!....Satan wishes to sift you
Luke 22:31Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan has asked excessively that [all of] you be given up to him [out of the power and keeping of God], that he might sift [all of] you like grain...
Your enemy is not one that does not know you. He has lived long enough to have met many like you. You are an individual and unique, but he knows YOUR weaknesses and the areas in which to tempt you specifically.
There's Hope....
32 But I have prayed especially for you [Peter], that your [own] faith may not fail; and when you yourself have turned again, strengthen and establish your brethren.
I love that Jesus says, "again" which says to me that first of all He knows that we don't get it right the first time or sometimes, the second or third or fourth time, but He says not "if" you turn again, but "WHEN" you turn again. When, When, When...! We will turn again..
The time is come that we do away with the B-plan. Time to release that safety net or the security blanket. In the boat is where we were before, but now stepping out on faith. Once even blessed in the boat, but now to the matter of walking on water!
Metaphorically this explains our journey with God. There's so much faith and believing and trust. We will, "walk where our feet have not tread before".
The new plan...To let go of the boat and not look back, not taking our eyes off of Him.
I also think about what Jesus told Simon (Peter), that he would deny Him three times but Peter denied that this would even happen. Even with the best intentions, and wanting so badly to live blamelessly and perfectly before Him never ever turning back, but the truth is if this were possible there would be no need for sanctification (the school of the Holy Spirit) and there would be no need for a savior. He knew that we couldn't live like this apart from Him.
We're harder on ourselves than He is on us. He has more patience with you than you have for yourself. That's why there is so much emphasis on getting ourselves out of the way. His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts He is gentler than even you are. He is perfect love, that's something that we can't and don't understand. Stop hating yourself and torturing yourself for not being perfect.
"When things got really bad and I mean really really bad", they had led Jesus away and the end was beginning. The beginning of the torture and abuse was beginning at this time and Peter had actuallly denied Him three times like Jesus said that he would, on the last time Jesus looked at him.
61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter recalled the Lord's words, how He had told him, Before the cock crows today, you will deny Me thrice.
62And he went out and wept bitterly [that is, with painfully moving grief].
Jesus looked at him. I have a friend, Roger, who tells me that at this time when the Lord looked at Peter he can just imagine the love in his eyes. He knew how much Peter would hurt. We serve a Lord who understands us. He knows us better than the enemy and makes provisions and grace enough for our needs. He knows that you won't get it right everytime and some of the times He's going to allow you to go through a storm, so that you can see for yourself your weaknesses that the enemy would come after. He also allows you to see them so that you know that this is what God is coming after in your life.
In my own recent storm, I have seen my weaknesses, I know what needs to be surrendered, I know where the enemy would work on me and I know where God is working.
I don't have to be afraid that I'll mess up beyond the point of recovery, He is in control. He has allowed the storm for the reason of working in my life and helping me to see. Many times people pray to be delivered from painful situations or difficult circumstances, I used to. That's one area that I know that I've matured in and I even get excited at the opportunity to learn more how to trust and rely on Him and excited to see what we're going to work on in my life. He is so interested in everything that concerns us.
There is no time in which we are too far gone. There is no time that it is too much.
He loves us.
Back to my story.....When things got so bad, just like in our lives when things get so bad and we feel like we're being sifted as grain and everything is stirring and swirling like a storm and we feel helpless to be able to make any changes oftentimes, we do what Peter did......John 21:3Simon Peter said to them, I am going fishing! They said to him, And we are coming with you! So they went out and got into the boat, and throughout that night they caught nothing.
We say..I go a fishing. We go back to those things that we're comfortable with in our old life. Our old reliefs our old skills or things that give us relief from the storm when things get too tough. What are those things for you? As TD Jakes put it, "How do you spell relief".
So in conclusion, I don't know if there's a major point that I'm trying to get across other than it's not too far gone. It's not beyond Him, it isn't even outside of Him. He is in control. He is the head of all principalities both in heaven and in earth and let Him work. Ask Him to show you what you need to see in your storm, ask him to teach you what you need to learn to mature and grow.
Until next time.....let go of the boat.
Happy Easter! He is Risen!! Wendy
Psalm 78:26He let forth the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by His power He guided the south wind.
Ephesians 3:10[The purpose is] that through the church the complicated, many-sided wisdom of God in all its infinite variety and innumerable aspects might now be made known to the angelic rulers and authorities (principalities and powers) in the heavenly sphere.
1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be so deceived and misled! Evil companionships (communion, associations) corrupt and deprave good manners and morals and character.
2 comments:
Love the blog! I like to talk about storms too!! Miss you. Came by yesterday. Missed you...
Love u,
Corrie
Storms have brought my grace and love for him to a greater level.
the storms will calm if you keep your eyes on him.
TM
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