Kristi Muszik Girlfriend, face that storm with fearless eyes.
Storms come and go in our lives. Every single one of us living on this earth has faced different things in our lives: disappointment, the pain of brokenness, heartache, broken dreams, broken relationships, illness, and various forms of fear.
You are never alone in facing your storm; be encouraged, knowing all our beloved sisters in this world, in their different walks of life, have suffered a storm, are facing a storm, or will face a storm.
But resist him, be firm in your faith [against his attack – rooted, established, immovable], knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being experienced by your brothers and sisters through the world. [You do not suffer alone] – 1 Peter 5:9 (AMP)
There is no exception. As long as we are here on this earth with adversity, walking around and seeing who he can devour, we will have storms.
Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined]. Be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry]. seeking someone to devour – 1 Peter 5:8 (AMP)
But Jesus has encouraged us with His words. He has already accomplished the victory for us to walk in when we face the storm. Jesus gives us peace when we are facing the storm. He has given us the ability to face the storm with fearless eyes and rebuke the storm.
I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world, you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]: I have overcome the world. [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.] – John 16:33 (AMP)
The Bible tells us that we are to be imitators of Jesus. Here are a couple of several scriptures we can look.
For [as a believer] you have been called for this purpose, since Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you may follow in His footsteps. – 1 Peter 2:21
whoever says he lives in Christ [that is, whoever says he has accepted Him as God and Savior] ought [as a moral obligation] to walk and conduct himself just as He walked and conducted Himself. – 1 John 2:6
Knowing we are to be like Jesus, we need to know what he did. How did he handle a storm? We read about a storm in the following addresses and how Jesus dealt with the storm.
Matthew 8:23-27
Mark 4:35-41
Luke 8:22-25
Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and while they were sailing, He fell asleep. And a fierce gale of wind swept down as if through a wind tunnel.
The disciples were fishing men. They have experienced sailors. They learned how to sail in all different forms of weather, but when they saw this storm, they knew it was something out of their control, and they couldn’t sail through it.
They became very fearful for their lives. This storm they were facing was raging all around them.
The fierce wind blew violently around them, causing the boat to be thrust around, out of their control, with waves of water overtaking them. The mighty arms of the wind are tearing apart their sails. They can’t hear each other’s voices as they are trying to fight against the fierce wind, drowning out their voice in dynamic sound.
Jesus woke from the thrusting of the boat. He looked around himself, seeing what was transpiring around him with fearful eyes. Looking at the fierce storm trying to overtake the ship, His disciple’s lives, and His own life.
Jesus’s thoughts filled with, why God? Why are you allowing this to happen? Why have you forsaken us when we need you the most? Why aren’t you delivering us from this raging storm, and why did you lead us to go this way, knowing that we would face this storm? Why God!
Then, He was filled with thoughts of, “What if?” What if I hadn’t crossed this body of water? I would still be safe at the shore. Maybe I misunderstood God’s direction when He told me to cross over. What’s going to happen to my disciples’ family? What’s going to happen to my ministry?
Jesus fell to his knees on the wooden floor of the boat as the raging waves beat upon him, crying out, “Why, God?” As the disciples are trying to hold on to the ropes of the boat that is being used by the wind to beat them, crying out, “We are all going to die!”
Jesus knows that if the disciples, with their fishing knowledge, can’t get them out of this storm, they are doomed.
Jesus’s body started shaking violently with doubt and unbelief of what God’s promises were. Jesus is listening to the raging storm around Him, believing its loud voice over His beloved Father’s still, calm voice.
Jesus looked at the raging storm with fearful eyes, surrounding His thoughts, emotions, and body to be engulfed into the arms of the raging storm, allowing it to claim the boat, His disciple’s lives, and His own life. We both know this didn’t happen with Jesus, but we must admit this has happened to us several times.
We both have personally allowed the storms in our lives to swallow us up and defeat us. We have cried, complained, and asked Why and What if.
But, by the grace of God, we both are sitting here with more opportunities to face our storms as Jesus did.
How did Jesus face that storm?
Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and while they were sailing, He fell asleep. And a fierce gale of wind swept down as if through a wind tunnel.
The disciples became very fearful for their lives. This storm they were facing was raging all around them.
The fierce wind blows violently around them, causing the boat to be thrust around, out of their control, with waves of water overtaking them. The mighty arms of the wind are tearing apart their sails. They can’t hear each other’s voices as they are trying to fight against the fierce wind, drowning out their voice in dynamic sound.
Desperate, they awoke Jesus, peacefully sleeping amid the raging battle storm.
Jesus wasn’t disturbed by the storm. Jesus acts as though nothing is amusing about the storm. Jesus acts, though, as this is a regular everyday occurrence.
Jesus didn’t get fearful. Jesus didn’t panic or get into anxiety. Jesus didn’t allow His thoughts to go into doubt and unbelief of God’s promises. Jesus didn’t ask God, “Why?” or “What if?”
Maybe Jesus was more frustrated about being disturbed by His peaceful sleep. But either way, He didn’t allow the storm to dictate His emotions or logical thinking.
What did Jesus do? How did he handle the storm?
Jesus got up from His peaceful sleep, looked at the storm trying to swallow up the boat and the lives in it with fearless eyes, and rebuked the wind and the raging, violent waves, and they ceased, and it became calm [a perfect peacefulness].
Then He said to the disciples, “Where is your faith?”
We are to handle the storm like Jesus. We are to rebuke them. We are to take God’s word, look at the storm with fearless eyes, and point to it, speaking God’s promises for the victory of that storm. We are to be persistent in staying in peace.
There may be times that we will have to be careful of who we are talking to about the storm we are facing, for there will be those who won’t understand, and they will get into fear and pull us down into despair.
Just like Jesus said to the disciples, “Where is your faith?” They were full of fear, and they tried to pull Jesus down into despair by telling Him that they were going to die, as according to their natural knowledge of being fishing men, they knew there wasn’t any hope.
But there is always hope in our beloved Heavenly Father if we believe in Him and guard our faith from anyone walking in fear.
There will also be times we will glide over the storm with God, like an eagle.
I believe in you, and we will face our storms with fearless eyes.
