recently, i have been feeling overwhelmed. there has been so much going on in my life and in my mind and in my heart. the other day i was talking with a friend and we were talking about how crazy our lives were and she said what someone told her. "sometimes you have to shut up and sit down."
wait, what? shut up and sit down? how is that supposed to help me?
shut up and sit down.
stop complaining. start listening. stop doing and just BE in the Presence of God.
this dear friend gently guided me to the story of Jesus calming the sea in Mark 4. for the past few days, i have been stuck there. listening. learning. being.
let's walk through it together...
"that day when evening came, He (Jesus) said to His disciple, "let's go over to the other side." leaving the crowd behind, they took Him along, just as He was, in the boat."
okay, so to preface this story, Jesus had just been teaching a large crowd all day along with His disciples. that must have been a long, sweaty day. and so when evening came, Jesus, who was looking out for His disciples, called His disciples to go with Him away. think about this for a moment. Jesus knew that they were going to encounter a storm along the way. and He said, LET US. He is not going to call you into a storm without Him. He walks you into it, through it and out of it. are you willing to follow Him "over to the other side?"
continuing on in the story...
"...there were also other boats with Him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
that little sentence at the beginning really struck me. "there were other boats with Him..." this means so much to me right now. it doesn't have to be just you and Jesus for Him to teach you. wait, let's rephrase that. it shouldn't be just you and Jesus. sometimes yes, but we were made for community. allow other people to encourage you and help you in your walk. also, when Jesus teaches you something or shows you His power be willing to share it with others. i am very prone to be seclusive in my relationship with Jesus but He is not just my Jesus. He is your Jesus. He is my God and He is your God. He is personal and He is powerful.
imagine what the disciples were thinking while the storm began and got worse and worse. do you think they ever wondered why Jesus called them the other side. i mean, didn't He know that there was going to be a storm? sometimes i wonder the same thing. "why did God call me to this? it's so hard." Jesus knew there was going to be a storm. He knew what each disciple was going to learn through it. He knows you too. He knows what He is doing in your life, even through the storm. i relate with what the disciples said to Jesus when they woke Him. i feel like i say that a lot to Jesus too. "don't you care that...?" (you fill in the blank)
"...He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to His disciples, "why are you so afraid? do you still have no faith?" they were terrified and asked each other, " who is this? even the wind and the waves obey Him!"
how amazing. put yourself there on the ship, soaked, almost drowning, fearful and then... wow! my problems seem so little now compared to that storm but think about it. He calmed that storm. He is that powerful. and He can calm the "storms" in your life. He is that personal. call out to Him. and listen to Him say "quiet. be still....and it was completely calm." maybe it won't be that drastic of a change in your life but listen to His voice, soak in His love and obey what He says.
sometimes, i need to shut up and sit down. i need to listen. i need to obey Him when He tells me to get into a boat and cross a lake even if there will be storms. but i also need to remember what He told His disciples "why are you so afraid? do you still have no faith?"
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