Imagine you were a boat builder. You wanted to build a boat that would be your last and would be your masterpiece. All the skills you had refined over many years of boatbuilding would be utilized for this, your best project.
You’d use the best materials and design. You wanted your boat to last. Not to be a showpiece in some fancy Sandton toys for big boys shop, but a boat that could go to sea, could withstand salt water, buffeting winds, relentless hammering waves. You’d make it strong.
Then you’d take your boat out to test it. You wouldn’t go on a calm day on a peaceful pond. A sea going vessel can only be tested on the sea and you’d thrill as it weathered storms and cut through the challenging waves.
We are living in perilous times. You only have to look around you to realize that. You only have to read a newspaper, listen to the TV or even talk to other people. Life is not plain sailing.
He says God created us for storms.
That made a lot of sense to me. We all know that life is full of problems and trials, challenges and setbacks. Even the bible says so.
2Ti 3:1 says, "but this know, in the last days perilous times will come"
If God knows everything, then of course He would have created us to be able to cope with whatever life will throw at us. I don’t think God intended us for a life of ease, with no challenges to overcome, no victories to celebrate.
What happens when there is a major disaster? Like the twin towers of September 11th?
Stories of bravery emerged, stories of helping each other, of pulling together. Sometimes it takes a crisis to get the best out of people. With the recent outbreak of xenophobia, the ordinary people of South Africa were amazing in rallying round to do something to help the displaced people.
God’s plan for us is that we should be the best that He intended for us. He wants us to grow more and more like Jesus. He is more interested in our growth and maturity than in our happiness. He uses storms to grow us. Even Jesus had to face storms.
So God allows storms in our lives so that we can grow. But the good news is, the storms are tailored to our ability to withstand them.
! Cor 10:13 says “Every test that you have experienced is the kind that normally comes to people, But God keeps his promise, and he will not allow you to be tested beyond your power to remain firm; at the time you are put to the test, he will give you the strength to endure it, and so provide you with a way out.”
Isn’t that great? We are destined to be over comers. We are destined to win. The devil is destined to loose.
So God sends storms tailor made for us to emerge stronger and victorious.
So how do we handle storms? How do we handle all the bad stuff that comes up in our lives?
James 1:2 tells us:
“My brothers, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way, for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure. Make sure that your endurance carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
God never promised us that we would have no problems. What He did promise is that he would be with us. Psalm 23 says, “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me.”
Let’s look at how the disciples handled a storm. Jesus had been busy all day, preaching, telling parables. The disciples had been involved too. At the end of a busy day, Jesus says, “ Come let us cross over to the other side.” Wow! a chance to go somewhere with Jesus. Let’s go.
The bible tells us they took Jesus with them. It is always a good idea to take God with you when you are going somewhere. Of course first, they had to leave the crowd. Why? Because the crowd didn’t want to go where Jesus was going. In general we will find we will have to leave the crowd to go with Jesus. We will need to go against what is popular and considered the social norm. The disciples were happy to do that.
Suddenly a strong wind blew up, and the waves began to spill over into the boat, so that it was about to fill with water.
Now most of this crew were fishermen. Don’t you think they had come across storms before? So they used the skills they had learned before. They took down the sail, angled the prow to the wind and started bailing water as it splashed into the boat.
But it wasn’t working this time. The water was coming in as fast as they were chucking it out. What to do?
Ah! We forgot. We have God in the boat with us. Quick, call on Him!
One of them is delegated for the job. He comes back in a short while.
“Guys, I have good news and I have bad news. God is in the boat with us.’Yay, all cheer! “ The bad news is - he’s asleep”
Well, go and wake Him ups for heavens’ sake, before we all drown. It’s amazing to think that these disciples really believed that they were all going to drown, God with them. So they wake him up. “Teacher, don’t you care that we are going to drown?’
This is an honest, desperate plea. No fancy words or polite phrases. It’s telling it like it is. So Jesus woke up and spoke to the wind. He addressed the storm. “ Be quiet, “ he said, “Be still.” Then He said to His disciples “Why were you so frightened? Have you still no faith?” The disciples were filled with awe. They had not realized how powerful the one with them was.
Did the disciples learn from the experience anything of value? Anything that they would not have learned if there had been no storm?
You bet! They learned how mighty Jesus is. They had had a life changing experience. Their faith and their trust grew in leaps and bounds.
Was it a comfortable experience? No way! They were wet and soggy, bailing to exhaustion, pitching and tossing on an angry sea. They were really frightened and had got beyond their ability to cope.
God is not interested in our comfort, but in our growth. If any of you have watched survivor, how many of them said it was an experience of a life time. Yet were they comfortable? Not in the least. It was much worse than they expected. But God’s rules of the universe decree when you face storms with the right attitude, you grow.
So what can we learn from this? First of all, if we are facing a storm right now, know that we are overcomers. God made us for storms. We will get through. We are destined to be victorious. We need to do everything in our power to help ourselves. We can use all the coping skills that we have learned in the past, seek help if necessary, rely on our support system.
Secondly, always go with God. Take Him with us in the boat. Sure, there are times when he seems to be asleep. The situation just gets worse and worse and it seems like
our prayers are falling on deaf ears. Remember, God will not allow us to be tested beyond what we can endure. Persevere.
Wake him up. Be honest. Tell Him you are afraid. Tell Him you are angry with Him because it seems like He doesn’t care. Storms are a time for fellowship with God. Almost anybody you meet who has got through some kind of struggle will tell you how they got closer to God through it.
Then, trust Him. Just leave it up to Him. There is nothing really else that you can do anyway.
One version of James says, “Count it all joy when you face various trials.”
Don’t moan, don’t complain, don’t grumble. Count it all joy. You will overcome.
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