Very often we see the Lord’s beauty in the weather in one day. Perhaps today was that day. We had gone out for a short walk exploring the river ribble area and the sun was crisp but descending in the sky. After a while the wind started to really blow the trees around and so we retreated to the forest to be out of the worst of it. When we emerged we suddenly got hit with a big hail storm with the wind, threatening to blow us down the hillside into the river, but we sheltered on the side of a massive aged oak tree.
24 And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. 25 Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”
26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 So the men marveled, saying, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
Turmoil can arise in our hearts which can cause more damage than the hail, or the winds. Doubt and fear can over come, and this can stop us from acting with courage, or acting to the best of our ability.
I remember trying to perform a solo when I was younger on the trumpet. I could play the solo perfectly and had done in the past but because people had criticised me and fear started to leak into my heart I started to dwell more on the failure rather than on the joy.
When sheltering by the old oak tree I remembered the story about Jesus in the boat, and although I wasn’t scared because I knew the storm would cease soon. The children where a bit battered, so we curled up behind this tree and kept warm for a few moments until it passed.
Jesus is like this, He will curl His arms around us in protection if we are in danger of being scared or having our faith broken. But we must seek Him, we can’t expect for the Almighty God just to do everything for us, we must go to seek shelter behind a tree, behind the tree of the cross, the sacrifice of the cross and Jesus will rise as if from the dead in our hearts and stir us once again into life.
Hearing reports on the news about sickening attacks by extremist islamics can deaden your heart and make you wonder, how long before Jesus will return to seek justice? But spending some time in prayer, seeking that refuge that God has placed within us all from our very creation, and asking God to light your fire will turn the frightening hail storm into another moment when you can once again step forward with courage and love, knowing that God is at work within us and all the injustices of the Earth shall be placed before our heavenly king, Jesus our saviour.
So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”
I pray for courage and love in the days to come, that we all come to love God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, with all our heart, soul, strength and mind, and we all come to love our neighbours as ourselves.
Amen
Blessings
Graham
365 Exhortations 