Praise the Lord
for new day. It is going to be one of the brilliant days of June. Thank you
Jesus. We read in Hebrews 6: “And so after longsuffering, Abraham received what
was promised.” God made a great promise to Abraham, but in order to receive it,
Abraham had to go through longsuffering. This is life, even with the promises of
God. Endurance and faith are the keys, and these things are only possible
because of the promises and faithfulness of God. The Bible says, “We have this
hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure” (Hebrews 6:19).
I am praying for one young mom who is battling serious psychological problems, another man who is going through deep depression, a young woman who is a cocaine addict, another young mom who is an alcolic. These people are dearly loved by their families. Somebody said " Every addict is some one's beloved". These persons who are loved by Jesus are in the midst of storms. The storms of life are raging in them and around them.
I am praying for one young mom who is battling serious psychological problems, another man who is going through deep depression, a young woman who is a cocaine addict, another young mom who is an alcolic. These people are dearly loved by their families. Somebody said " Every addict is some one's beloved". These persons who are loved by Jesus are in the midst of storms. The storms of life are raging in them and around them.
As the
disciples of Jesus were with Jesus, He was in their midst. In spite of His
presence the disciples were encountering a very raging storm. They asked the
question, “Jesus, don't you care if I drown? Are you aware of what I am going
through?” They were in a storm. They were frightened, and they could not
understand how or why this was happening.
When we are in
the midst of storms, the enemy, the accuser of the " Brethren" comes to us
bringing in the seeds of doubt , despair and fear. A storm in our lives does not
mean that the Lord does not love us. It does not mean that He is angry with us,
or that he is paying us back for something. Sometimes the storms that happen in
our lives are self-made, but often storms just happen, so trying to analyze what
happened or assign blame is a fruitless activity. We live in a fallen world. As
Jesus said, “[God] causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends
rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:45). In other words, good
and bad happen to all. The important thing is whether or not we are prepared for
them.
Jesus is with us in the storm. If we are going to be in a storm, the one person we want your boat is Jesus. Jesus could have stayed on the shore and let the disciples take all the risks by themselves, but he did not do that. Where they went, he went.
The problem for the disciples was that though he was with them, he was asleep. They interpreted His sleep as a lack of caring. It is interesting that this is the only place in all the Bible that we read of Jesus sleeping. The disciples wondered how he could sleep through the storm, and how he could sleep when they were in danger. They expected him to be attentive to their needs even in his sleep.
We have all been in such situations. While we are in the middle of a crisis it seems like God is off somewhere taking a nap. At such times He doesn’t seem very responsive to our need. (At least we know that we are in the same boat as the disciples.) Let's consider Jesus’ response when He is awaken. After He rebuked the storm, he then rebuked his disciples by asking two questions: “Why are you so afraid?”, and “Do you still have no faith?”. Fear and faith are incompatible. We may have expected that Jesus would be more compassionate here.
Jesus is with us in the storm. If we are going to be in a storm, the one person we want your boat is Jesus. Jesus could have stayed on the shore and let the disciples take all the risks by themselves, but he did not do that. Where they went, he went.
The problem for the disciples was that though he was with them, he was asleep. They interpreted His sleep as a lack of caring. It is interesting that this is the only place in all the Bible that we read of Jesus sleeping. The disciples wondered how he could sleep through the storm, and how he could sleep when they were in danger. They expected him to be attentive to their needs even in his sleep.
We have all been in such situations. While we are in the middle of a crisis it seems like God is off somewhere taking a nap. At such times He doesn’t seem very responsive to our need. (At least we know that we are in the same boat as the disciples.) Let's consider Jesus’ response when He is awaken. After He rebuked the storm, he then rebuked his disciples by asking two questions: “Why are you so afraid?”, and “Do you still have no faith?”. Fear and faith are incompatible. We may have expected that Jesus would be more compassionate here.
It is only in the
storm that we truly understand who Jesus is. Perhaps the most amazing part of
the story is the disciple’s reaction to Jesus. When Jesus calmed the storm,
according to the Bible, “They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this?
Even the wind and the waves obey him!’” (Mark 4:41). They were afraid of the
storm, but they were terrified of Jesus. It is quite something to be confined in
a small space with One whom you suddenly realize is the Lord of the universe.
Your knees give way and you begin to tremble. You find it difficult to breathe.
Your insides are shaking and you cannot stop.
In his book, "The Unnecessary Pastor", Eugene Peterson writes: “My two sons are both rock climbers, and I have listened to them plan their ascents [up a mountain]. They spend as much or more time planning their climbs as in the actual climbing. They meticulously plot their route and then, as they climb, put in what they call ‘protection’— pitons hammered into small crevices in the rock face, with attached ropes that will arrest a quick descent to death. Rock climbers who fail to put in protection have short climbing careers. Our pitons or ‘protection’ come as we remember and hold on to those times when we have experienced God’s faithfulness in our lives. Every answered prayer, every victory, every storm that has been calmed by his presence is a piton which keeps us from falling, losing hope, or worse yet, losing our faith. Every piton in our life is an example of God’s faithfulness to us. . . . As we ascend in the kingdom of God, we also realize that each experience, each victory is only a piton — a stepping stone toward our ultimate goal of finishing the race and receiving the crown of glory.”
In his book, "The Unnecessary Pastor", Eugene Peterson writes: “My two sons are both rock climbers, and I have listened to them plan their ascents [up a mountain]. They spend as much or more time planning their climbs as in the actual climbing. They meticulously plot their route and then, as they climb, put in what they call ‘protection’— pitons hammered into small crevices in the rock face, with attached ropes that will arrest a quick descent to death. Rock climbers who fail to put in protection have short climbing careers. Our pitons or ‘protection’ come as we remember and hold on to those times when we have experienced God’s faithfulness in our lives. Every answered prayer, every victory, every storm that has been calmed by his presence is a piton which keeps us from falling, losing hope, or worse yet, losing our faith. Every piton in our life is an example of God’s faithfulness to us. . . . As we ascend in the kingdom of God, we also realize that each experience, each victory is only a piton — a stepping stone toward our ultimate goal of finishing the race and receiving the crown of glory.”
In
Christ,
Brownhttp://youtu.be/jNjq54fgkhU
Super
Summer Music Festival
Saturday, June 30, 2012 at 6:30
PM
Location: First United Methodist
Church
53
McKinley Avenue, Endicott
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist
Church
Musicians include: Aric Phinney, Yancey
Moore,
David
Berry, Emma Brunson, Dianne Glann.
Weekly
Television outreach:
Friday
7:00 PM
Time
Warner Cable Channel 4.
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