Song of the Day
“Tremble” by I Am They
Scripture to reflect upon
- John 1:4-5,
- Phil 4:7,
- Ps 107:29,
- Matt 8:26-27,
- Mark 3:11,
- James 2:19,
- Phil 2:9-11,
Devotional thought
There are problems in our life that are there simply because we do not have peace, and have not submitted that area to the Lordship of Jesus. We have storms raging, insecurities, and darkness that is brewing chaos in our day to day living. It doesn’t have to be this way! We can walk in freedom from this sort of restless, chaotic living.
The disciples experienced this sort of chaos once on a boat. Matthew records a time when Jesus and His disciples were in a boat and a storm arose. The boat was getting battered by the tempest, and the men grew very fearful, fearing even for their lives! When they came to Jesus, their Master, they found Him sleeping in the boat!
Have you ever felt that what was making you chaotic and restless wasn’t affecting the people around you with the same sense of intensity?
That may be a clue that you are overreacting and allowing your anxieties to rule your thinking.
Anyway, back to the story. So, they woke up Jesus by yelling out to Him, “Save us, Lord! We are about to die!” (Matt 8:25). His response is a super challenging one! He tells them they are being cowardly and that they are of little faith (Matt 8:26)! What was that about? Why did He say that? Didn’t they come to Him and confess their fear to Him like we are supposed to?
I believe that it frustrated Jesus to hear His followers react to this storm in the way they did because they forgot the overall picture! They forgot that the Creator of the world was in the same boat they were in! He created the very wind and waves that were rocking their boat. It was this Man that was on the mission from the Father to bring each of us salvation through death on a Cross – not death on a boat! He, and by extension they, had a mission to complete, and nothing was going to hinder them from fulfilling this purpose of God for the Messiah! They just allowed the terror of the moment to overshadow the ultimate purposes and mission of their Father!
How true is this for us too? Moment by moment living happens when we lose sight of the overall plan of God for us. Maybe, if we could remember that the Messiah is in the boat with us, we could endure the tempests of life with a more calm and peaceful approach. We might even be able to respond in a peaceful way to the storms of life rather than constantly yelling out to our Savior to save us at the slightest bit of adversity!
The key to our amazement is to recognize the peace that comes with just the slightest breath from the mouth of our Creator to make the chaos tremble and flee our lives (Matt 8:27)! It only takes a command from the Lord to calm the tempest, and I believe that until He does so He is using it to refine and strengthen our lack of faith in His ability to do so! Jesus is interested in our trust in His ability to bring a sense of peace to our heart and mind as we stay focused on who He is and rely on Him to fulfill His mission for us!
Let’s allow the reality of our God being in the boat of life with us to stop the darkness of fear to overcome us at the trials we face, and for us to dwell in the light of His glory and peace forever! Just the sound of His Name and the power of His voice makes all the darkness and adversaries in our lives tremble! Trust Him.
Prayer
My Lord and God. I praise You for being the all-powerful God of the universe that causes all of my fears and adversaries to tremble at the sound of Your matchless Name! You haven’t given me the spirit of fear, so please give me the strength to trust in You to overcome the fears in my life! I love You Lord, and look to You now as I face the situations in my life that have been hindering my faith in You. Please help me God! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
