The ever increasing price of gasoline has affected many in so many different ways. So much so that I wanted to get this message out before the 4th of July weekend. This issue has brought about many hardships for families large and small. It has affected ministries large and small, including the one that I Pastor, not just between the four walls, but the hundreds of you that read this blog every week. This message was written to encourage you all. Don't lose heart. Faint Not!
Remember, in the book of Matthew, Jesus walks on water? I have discovered many things about this particular scripture, one of which I want to share.
The bible says that Peter and the other disciples were in a boat at three in the morning, far away from land. The NLT says, "The disciples were in trouble." A storm had risen and the waves were heavy, or huge. I am sure all of us can relate to such a situation in our lives. If not, keep living. Trust me, it's coming.
Here is what I want you to see: Jesus is walking on stormy waters, not calm waters. Remember also that the bible says the waves were huge. Picture that! Jesus is in your storms! I hear the scriptures that say, "I am with you always." "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
Peter sees Jesus out on the water. To be sure, he asked the Lord, "Lord, if it's really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water." (NLT) That was the easy part. This is how we are as Christians when everything is going {"Honky Dory."} Life is great, we have no problem believing how great God is. It's not until we are in the midst of our storms that we lose sight of who we say we believe in. The issues of life, the circumstances we are confronted with sometimes smother our hope and our trust in Christ. This is what happened to Peter. The storm, the huge waves, intimidated him. He panicked. Just like some of us, when the issues that we are confronted with, the storms of life that are designed to train us, to mature us in Christ, if we are not careful we tend to forget how great God is when we are in the midst of our storms. To show us how we lose our wits, the moment He brings us out of our storms, only then do we come to ourselves and remember how great God is.
There is a young minister that has followed my progression over the years, who preached a message a few years ago. A message that I never forgot, and whenever I encounter a storm in my life, the Lord reminds me of the title of that minister's message:
"In The Midst of No Way Out, Feed Your Faith, and Starve Your Doubt!"
1 comments:
Pastor Anderson,
That simple phrase- "In the midst of a storm, feed your faith, starve your doubt" was great - it speaks to the process of faith - logic would have us retreat, feel depressed and go into a shell, but faith which is very illogical tells us to do the exact opposite - praising his name in spite of, feeling good, encouraging others. Keeping the faith is the only and best way!
Pamela Payne Foster, author of "Is there a balm in Black America?"
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