I wanted to title the message today “Faith Through the Storm” but the Lord said “Faith the Storm”.
Faith the Storm: In other words, trust the process!
We all face storms, but do you know you can
Mark 4:35-41 (NIV). “That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?’ He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’ They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’”
1. You can be close to Jesus and still encounter storms
When Jesus said let’s go to the other side, He knew they would encounter a
- Sometimes people who know and love the Lord think they should be exempt from stormy experiences of life.
- Some Christians make the mistake of thinking, just because they have the Lord in their life that they will be immune to trouble, tribulation, and problems.
Jesus was in the boat, and the storm still struck.
- Even with Jesus is in your life, you will encounter
- There are physical storms, financial storms, emotional storms, and relational storms which can strike you suddenly with no warning.
But just because you find yourself in a storm it doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love you or is punishing you.
- Jesus led those
The Bible says, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you… if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.” (1 Peter 4:12,16 NIV)
Can you just picture that little boat in the storm?
2. Jesus permits storms to test your faith
When the disciples awoke Jesus, He immediately asked them two questions: “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no
- God tests our faith to purify our faith. The Bible says, “These trials will show that your faith is genuine.
- It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold.” (1 Peter 1:7 NLT)
Sometimes life is good. God
A. The pressure test
What will you do and how do you react when you get to the POD? (Point Of Desperation)
- Like a pressure cooker building up heat and pressure, will you explode, or will you keep your lid on and
B. The people test
Sometimes God puts people in your life who will stretch your faith.
- They rub you the wrong way, and they seem to find the one nerve you have and rub it.
- They aren’t hard to love… they’re impossible for you to
C. The persistence test
In this test, “Will you maintain your commitments, or will you quit?”
- When you’re on task for God, there will be a time when you want to give up.
Sometimes all the external circumstances indicate that you should give up and throw in the towel.
- `A weak person gives up too soon. But a wise person
- `A weak person gives up too soon. But a wise person
The God rewards comes when you pass the faith test.
3. Storms will force you to cry out to Jesus
A few of the disciples were
- They started rowing and bailing water.
- Realized they were in uncharted waters.
- Quickly became apparent their abilities weren’t enough, so they called out to Jesus.
- Trouble is suppose to
- Trouble is suppose to
When they woke Jesus up, they asked him, “Don’t you care if we drown?”
Have you ever thought that or said to God when you’re going through a storm?
- “God, don’t you care that I’m going through a tough time?”
You don’t have to wonder.
- The Bible says that you can “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
When it comes to adversity and trouble, God will allow you to be
What if the disciples had been saying that? “Oh, let’s not wake Jesus up. We can handle this.
- It’s when life is unbearable that we are forced to cry out to God.
Paul wrote in 2 Cor. 1 as he was expressing some of his personal trials, “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God.” (2 Corinthians 1:8-9)
You may be in a
One song says… I cried and I cried, cried all night long, until I found the Lord. My soul could not be contented… until I found the Lord.
4. Jesus will calm you or He will calm the storm
Again, I love the fact that Jesus was asleep during the storm. There’s a few takeaways… Jesus was a man who experienced tiredness just like us.
But we also see He possessed such a strong sense of
There were two storms present that night.
- There was the atmospheric storm happening outside
- There was the emotional
- They were filled with fear. Fear can be more destructive than a hurricane.
Jesus said, “Why are you afraid?”
Then He spoke to the wind and the
- In this case, Jesus took the storm away.
- But sometimes He doesn’t remove the storm, instead He speaks to our troubled hearts and says, “Hush. Be still. Be quiet.”
- And when we
Paul had a storm he called a thorn in the flesh.
God didn’t remove it; In its place, He gave Him the
- Paul wrote, “To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9 NIV)
Some of you have been asking God to take away your storm… He hasn’t done that yet, but He is offering to give you inner
5. If Jesus is in your boat, you know you’ll make it through the storm
During the storm, the disciples forgot what Jesus said. He said, “Let us go over to the other side.”
- They were going to arrive on the other side because Jesus had spoken that
God never promised that we would live a stormproof life.
He just promises to be with us during the storm.
I love the paraphrases version of Isaiah 43. God says, “When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end—Because I am God, your personal God… I paid a huge price for you…That’s how much you mean to me! That’s how much I love you! So don’t be afraid: I’m with you.” (Isaiah 43:2-7 MSG)
I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be in a
The lesson of the storm is simple yet profound. Jesus never promised you a smooth ride, but He guarantees definite destination.
IN CLOSING… the lesson learned today is, you don’t just face a storm… you
I trust the ONE who is the maker and ruler of all things. You make Him bigger than what you will ever face or go through. Troubles of what ever kind must bow down before God.
Be still and know the outcome… Be still and know I am God!
Did you notice the last thing the
They said, “Who is this man? Even the wind and waves obey Him?”
That’s an important question for you to answer as well. So,
He is Jesus, I wish I could more accurately describe Him… He is indescribable, He’s incomprehensible, He’s
Family listen, He is Alpha and Omega; the first and the last; the beginning and the end. He’s God of the past, present and future. Always was and will be. There is none like Him and yes you can put your
Jesus: FUWU= For Us & With Us.
Is. 43:1 But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush[a] and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. 5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back. ’Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth— 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”