“But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, TOSSED with waves: for the WIND was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night (the blackest, darkest hour) JESUS WENT UNTO THEM, WALKING ON THE SEA.”
And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they CRIED OUT FOR (because of) FEAR.
But STRAIGHTWAY (Immediately) JESUS SPAKE unto them, saying, BE OF GOOD CHEER (have courage) IT IS I ( I AM ); BE NOT AFRAID.” Matthew 14:25-27
Through the journey of this life many times we find that we are that ship, the waves crashing and tossing us about, unable to catch balance tossed with that horrible great wind that is blowing down on us in the worst possible hour.
The fourth watch, when we have been tossed by the raging waves of trails of life and circumstances that we have no control over.
Trails and troubles that comes just as a part of this life for us and for all others.
But when you add that horrid wind, that cold, fierce blowing of the fury of the enemy, because he loves to kick you when your down and it is always during last stretch of the night.
He thinks of it as this, you are already weak, tired, and completely exhausted, just worn out from the hours you have already battled through the dark and he knows if he can get you to lose focus that this night is never going to end, he will destroy your faith in God.
Notice Jesus came in that hour, Jesus knew where they were, he knew what they were battling and he knew at what point they would break IF he did not step in.
Being in an exhaustive state it is hard to see whose hand is whose and this was Jesus coming to their rescue but they were so mentally drained that they were afraid that he too was more trouble headed their way.
When they cried out (as we cry out to Him) it was then that he said IT IS I, and encouraged their faith.
Peter was so distraught, he needed reassurance, just as we too sometimes need to know that He is aware of what we are going through, that He really is there, and that He really is going to take us through the night.
“And Peter answered and him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me to come to thee on the water.
And he said, Come, And when Peter was down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
BUT when he SAW THE WIND boisterous (violent) HE WAS AFRAID, he cried, saying
Lord, SAVE ME.” Matthew 14:28-30
Jesus had given him that reassurance that he was aware and was completely on the scene, and at
the comforting voice of his Lord he began to walk on those horrible waves that had held him as their terrorized prisoner only moments earlier.
In life, we sometimes feel like we can’t catch a break.
We think we see the shimmer of the morning starting to break through and then the darkness
only returns with even more blackness and wind howling.
We feel like as soon as things are finally looking up something happens and it all crashes in on us.
“And IMMEDIATELY JESUS STRETCHED FORTH HIS HAND, AND CAUGHT HIM, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, Wherefore didst thou ( why did you) doubt?
And when they were come into the ship, THE WIND CEASED.” Matthew 14:28-30
So many troubled waters, waves of sickness, waves of financial woes, waves of worry about our children and their futures, waves of family issues, the winds of past hurts and unresolved heartaches and the stone cold blow of lack of closure to doors of the past. It all rocks, it tosses, and that wind will blow.
But Jesus came through in that darkest most tempestuous hour, even though they thought they couldn’t make it, HE KNEW when they couldn’t and by allowing Peter to walk on those waves, he was really showing him something.
People are so mean about Peter, they are always pointing out the fact that he temporarily slipped, but how many of them have ever been in Peter’s sandals?
We can look at others and think well, this or that, but until we have truly, truly been in their shoes we don’t know how we would react, but Jesus does and he knows what we can handle has nothing to do with what we FEEL like we can handle.
Storms to weather, giants to fight, crosses to bear, and no one likes it. I have yet to meet a Christian who jumps up in Church and shouts “Woo, hoo bring on the storm!”
I have fought some hellacious giants, there are battles that I am not sure that I will win in this earth but I know if I hold on and keep the faith, that even if it is at the feet of the Lord in New Jerusalem that the battle will have been won.
There have been times when warnings to church has come that storms were brewing and I’d be like, please, please no, no more storms.
We all go through it and some are worse than others and there is always someone else whose storm makes ours look like a sunny morn.
I never will forget the testimony of a certain preacher, I love to hear him, he straight shoots, preaches hell, fire, brimstone, mingled with love and compassion and all with a comedic edge that can make you dig where he is coming from without making you want to hide under the pew.
He often made remarks about his childhood that confused me, because his Mom is an awesome woman and I couldn’t figure out how all this happened to him.
One night he told us what God had brought him from, he had been born to stoned parents who had a house full of kids, and kept having kids, he told us about watching his baby sibling die, believing the baby may have frozen to death because there was a hole in the ceiling with snow actually falling in, and he kept a crew cut all the time and had a very visible scar on his head, he went on to tell us that he received that after opening a can of food without permission and being hit with the still attached to the can, jagged top.
When he and his siblings rescue came, he was eleven and his Mom later told me that he was barely dressed and wearing a ladies top.
And to know him now and to know that God stepped in and changed this child’s life and fulfilled HIS PURPOSE for him, placing him with a good family that would teach him of a God that loved him despite what that horrible storm he had lived in for eleven years had tried to convince him of.
Don’t try to wait out the storm to pursue the things of God for your life.
The young man who asked Jesus if he could “bury his father” before following him was answered by “Let the dead bury their dead; but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.”
It will not always easy, but sometimes we have to stop fighting with things that are dead, and trying to change things that will never be changed, and accept them as such, and go on in our walk with the Lord.
Sometimes we have to take what we have and work with it, even if we think we are lacking what we “need” to get the job done.
In the story of Elisha, we are introduced to him as he is plowing a field having only eleven oxen, now we know that can’t be done and that is why we are told that HE HIMSELF IS THE TWELFTH OXEN!
Field needed plowed, he needed an ox, so he did what had to be done.
He could have said well, whenever we get another ox, I’ll take care of that field, but he didn’t.
So the giant you face is monstrous, the cross is growing might heavy, and that wind is threatening to smash your ship to smithereens, BUT JESUS IS RIGHT THERE.
He will slay that giant, He will give you His strength to make that cross lighter to bear, and He will lead you BACK TO SAFETY AND THAT STORM WILL CEASE.
Morning will come breaking through and at the end of it all, that little ship will be stronger, having weathered that dreaded storm, it will now be a proven sea worthy vessel, those giants won’t look quite so tall when you know the hand that is stretching out to catch you is the hand that controls it all.
Just so someone out there will know, this is NOT what I had planned for today, and He showed me things in this I had never noticed and I feel his presence with it, I will never pretend to know your pain or tell you life will be great, but one day the storm will pass and maybe sooner than you know!
I want to leave you with this, quote it, memorize and keep it to your heart:
Psalm 56:3 : “WHAT TIME I AM AFRAID, I WILL TRUST IN THEE.”
May God bless you and keep you, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Φλογιζω/ all rights reserved. NBJ/2015 **REVISTED 08/24/20222**
Awesome song, hope it will encourage you Shared from YouTube