When the Storm Comes
Clinging to Jesus when life turns sour is always the right choice. He is truly our anchor. Stormy seas might begin to sink our boat. Cancer, divorce, financial stress, ill health and family addictions threaten to destroy us.. We often get battered by life’s ugliest waves.
In order to realize the worth of the anchor we need to feel the stress of the storm. (Corrie ten Boom)
Wise boat captains near shore will anchor their boat during a storm. But what makes the anchor work effectively? The chain. Without a chain connecting the anchor to the boat, the anchor is useless.
Who controls the chain? We do.
- The anchor is Jesus, the Holy Spirit and God the Father.
- Our boat is us.
- The storms at sea are the crises which happen to us in this life.
- Our chain? It’s how we decide to respond when our lives go terribly wrong.
Fortunately, whenever I’m in pain, I’ve always run toward Jesus.
Sinking Ships
Some Christians are taught the most foolish thing imaginable; that if they give their lives to Jesus, they won’t experience any of life’s storms. Ridiculous! Neither history nor the Scriptures back up that whopper. The saints who live in peace have gone thru the storms of life with Christ by their side and been changed by the experience.
What grieves me are the believers who are encouraged to “get mad at God” whenever life gets rough. Sometimes they face the natural consequences of their own sin. Other times, tragedy blindsides them. Rather than cling to the Lord, bad Christian teaching encourages them to blame God for their troubles, rage at Him and then stomp off to sulk in a corner.
It’s the equivalent of breaking the chain and dropping the anchor into the sea because a storm is raging.
Nothing can be more foolish.
Changed by Hardship
Today I jotted down a handful of ways I’ve grown and been transformed through the tough times I’ve endured in the last 35+ years. Let me list a handful.
- A rough 1st year of marriage taught me “Self-pity has no strength.” Indulging in self-pity poisons our faith. This year we just celebrated our 25th anniversary and our union has just grown sweeter
- My dad died when I was 26, after a long illness. But it was frustrating, because God didn’t answer any of my prayers. My dad didn’t recover and I have never known for sure if he was saved or not. But since that time I’ve consistently experienced God’s supernatural peace about my earthly father.
- I got puffed up in my early 20s, while running a food pantry for my church. I found out Jesus had a sense of humor when someone stole my groceries. His gentle question sprang up in my heart; “So, how much do you love the poor, Maureen?” Very little. Because at that time I hadn’t spent a nickel of my own money to feed the poor. Since then I’ve become more generous.
- I’ve grown into a much more compassionate, woman while helping others minister to the poor, the sick and the homeless. Once it was uncomfortable and awkward. Going out after dark to pray with strangers was frightening. Now it’s easy.
My Spiritual Point
Often, I’ve walked through hardship, instead of being delivered from it. But clinging to Christ my anchor has always brought me to calmer seas. So don’t let go of the anchor.
This image came from Pixabay,com.
