Category: Finding peace

WHAT TO FOCUS ON

What amazing experiences are waiting for us once we hold tightly to the supernatural peace of Christ.

A recent diagnosis of Lyme Disease put me in a quickly descending tailspin of toxic thoughts.  Will there be long term side effects or permanent damage?  Will I recover 100%?  Is this going to impede the upcoming vacations that I’m eagerly waiting for?  What if, what if, what if….

HOLDING TIGHTLY TO THE NASTY

I find myself holding onto something, either positive or negative thoughts, but not at the same time.  And if you are like me that slippery slope into negativity can happen quickly. Have you ever noticed that our spiritual hands are never empty?  Holding on tightly to the nasty stuff like bitterness, offenses, anger, unforgiveness, fear, etc. can quickly become a huge burden.

SORT OUT THE JUNK

So, what’s the fix? Becoming doers of God’s word. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, Paul states, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”  This simple solution is harder to execute.  Fortunately, the Bible also tells us that Jesus will never leave us or forsake us.  Jesus offers to help us sort out the junk.

A beloved Bible story brings this principle to life.  Matthew 14:22-33 tells of Jesus calling Peter out into the water.  The familiar story begins with Jesus walking on the water toward the disciples in their boat.  The disciples are terrified, until hearing their master’s voice; “Take Courage! It is I.  Don’t be afraid.”  His comforting words calm their fears. 

PETER LETS GO

But, for Peter, the master’s words embolden him to try something new.  “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water.”  Jesus calls him, and for a moment Peter lets go of all the trepidations that his natural mind screams at him and embraces the supernatural by focusing on the peace that only Jesus can provide

Though the experience is short-lived, Peter miraculously walks on water!  While he remained focused on Jesus, he was free to defy nature with a miraculous new experience.   But, as soon as fear crept in, he began to sink until he cried out to the Savior of the World; “Lord, save me!” Immediately, Jesus catches him.

So, we have the contrast of the positive versus the negative. When Peter focuses on Christ, he is free to walk on the water. When the negative thoughts enter his mind, he sinks faster than a bag of lead.  If Peter had released the negative thoughts, how much further could he have walked on top of the water? 

THE CHOICE

What about us; are we willing to release fear and negativity when Jesus calls?  Probably you do not have the diagnosis of Lyme disease, but you have other challenges in your life. Let go of the nasty stuff like bitterness, offenses, anger, unforgiveness, fear, etc. What amazing experiences are waiting for us once we release the negativity and hold tightly to the supernatural peace of Christ. Hold on to the Light.

RESTING IN THE STORM

When life rocks me to the core, there is hope.

Lately I have been having a rough time with a back injury. I’m so glad that Jenny wrote this piece:

This made no sense!  The Master never makes mistakes, but this is a big one!  He suggested we cross the lake.  Now, here we are on the verge of sinking.  In all my years of fishing, never have I seen a squall of this magnitude.  We are taking in water alarmingly faster than we can possibly bail out, yet there he is sleeping!  The waves rock violently almost tipping over the boat and yet he sleeps.  His soaking wet body rests on a waterlogged cushion, yet he sleeps.  We holler at each other just to hear above the howling wind and crashing waves. Yet he sleeps as peacefully as a well-fed baby in his mother’s arms.

OUR LOOMING DEMISE

When the wind first picked up, we realized a squall was coming and prepared for it.  Most of us were seasoned fishermen and know what to do when bad weather strikes.  But this was different. On the brink of disaster, we have no choice but to wake the Master and make him aware of our looming demise. 

HOW COULD HE BE SLEEPING?

We wanted to let him rest, knowing how exhausted he is.  Preaching and healing fatigues him at times.  But how can a person rest in the middle of a raging storm?    Frantically shouting and shaking him awake, we asked, “How can you be sleeping?  We are going to drown in this storm!  Don’t you care?”

WHERE IS YOUR FAITH?

His eyes blink open and realizing the magnitude of the storm, he stands up and rebukes the wind and the waves.  To our astonishment, immediately the wind stopped blowing and the sea turned to glass.   Our mouths still agape as he turns toward us and compassionately rebukes us with one question; “Where is your faith?” (As told by one of the Twelve)

NO MISTAKE ON BEING ON THAT BOAT

How often I ponder these events and think of how the wind and waves obeyed the Lord.  I understand there was no mistake about being in the boat that day.  That storm proves a valuable lesson.  We learn that Jesus, the creator of the universe, has all power and authority over nature.  In all circumstances we need to stay focused on Christ and not be shaken by what is happening around us.  Just as Jesus rested during the storm, we can rest in him and not be overwhelmed by life’s storms.  We can aim to rest as peacefully as Jesus did that day on the boat. 

HOW TO DEAL WITH YOUR STORMS

Read Mark 4:35-41 and ponder the wonders of Jesus.  What storms are you facing?  Are you looking at the storm through spiritual eyes or earthly eyes?  Do you stay in peace as life’s trials feel like waves crashing over the boat?  Picture being on the boat with the disciples.  Imagine the placid sea after Jesus’ rebuke. What a blessing to know the Savior who can calm all our storms.  The storms are real, but they no longer need to rock us to our core.

Click to listen to the Lewis’ story of being in the center of the storm

PEACE BE STILL

Life can be uncertain, scary and confusing. Drowning in the heaviness of circumstances, we have the choice to reach out and cry, “Lord, save me!”

A great distance from land, the boat appears as a mere speck in the horizon. The wind whips the waves higher and higher. Accounts in Matthew 24 and Mark 4 describe the terror of the disciples in the midst of two different storms.  In the Gospel of Matthew, they see in the distance a figure. Is that actually a person walking across the water? The men cry out in fear. Then they hear the voice. It belongs to the One they love: Jesus. “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

Amidst the surf, Jesus calls across to Peter, “Come!” Slowly Peter raises one foot over the side of the boat. Suddenly he finds himself actually standing on water. Despite being soaking wet, Peter makes his way toward the Savior.

Then comes that monster wave. It almost knocks Peter over. Startled, Peter wonders what in the world he is doing, attempting to walk across the Sea of Galilee. Fear fills his soul. Peter stops looking at Jesus and takes in the reality of his circumstances. Doubts flood his heart. The seas grab his attention. Peter begins to sink. Before he totally goes under, in terror he screams, “Lord save me!” Jesus reaches out and pulls Peter up from the waters.

Sadly, shaking His head, Jesus cries, “Oh, you of little faith, why did you doubt?” From Peter’s very first step, Jesus knew what a difficult test this would be. It pushed self-confident Peter beyond all his human abilities.

God does His best work when we come to the same realization as Peter: we cannot save ourselves. Notice the progression. Peter had to make that first step of faith out of the boat before his faith, or lack thereof, could be revealed.

Life can be uncertain, scary and confusing. Drowning in the heaviness of circumstances, we have the choice to reach out and cry, “Lord, save me!” Not until we invite the Savior does Jesus enter and make our twisted ways straight. Jesus does not tell us to hide away from the storms in the bottom of a boat. He tells us to get out of the boat and walk toward Him, regardless of our crisis. Only after that initial step does our Savior then whisper, “Peace be still.”

Click for further info on what Jesus means by “Peace be still”

PEACE BE STILL

God does His best work when we come to the same realization as Peter: we cannot save ourselves.

A great distance from land, the boat is merely be a speck in the horizon. The wind whips the waves higher and higher. The disciples are terrified when they see in the distance a figure. Is that actually a person walking across the water? The men cry out in fear. Then they hear the voice. It belongs to the One they love: Jesus. “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

Amidst the surf, Jesus calls across to Peter, “Come!” Slowly Peter raises one foot over the side of the boat. Suddenly he finds himself actually standing on water. Despite being soaking wet, Peter makes his way toward the Savior.

Then comes that monster wave. It almost knocks Peter over. Startled Peter wonders what in the world he is doing, attempting to walk across the Sea of Galilee. Fear fills his soul. Peter stops looking at Jesus and takes in the reality of his circumstances. Doubts flood his heart. The seas grab his attention. Peter begins to sink. Before he totally goes under, in terror he cries, “Lord save me!” Jesus reaches out and pulls Peter up from the waters.

Sadly, shaking His head, Jesus cries, “Oh, you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

From Peter’s very first step, Jesus knew what a difficult test this would be. It pushed self-confident Peter beyond all human skills. Peter had to realize he could not save himself. God does His best work when we come to the same realization as Peter: we cannot save ourselves.

When we are pushed beyond our abilities and understand we have no power of our own to save ourselves. Drowning in the heaviness of life, we reach out and cry, “Lord, save me!” It’s not until we invite the Savior, does Jesus enter and make our twisted ways straight. The Savior then whispers, “Peace be still.”

Click for further info on what Jesus means by “Peace be still”