Yesterday Mary found herself looking into the face of an angel, sent by God. Gabriel greeted Mary and told her, this humble young virgin, of her favor with God and man. We’re not taking time right now to delve into the reasons some of us could listen to other’s acclimates to our name– a roasting if you will- while others would prefer just not to be the subject of the same, but when God says you are favored, it’s a blessing to behold. And that’s exactly what God, through Gabriel has just spoken. So, what’s the trouble with Mary?
Not Mary
Not Mary. As Gabriel greeted her, she didn’t sit up straighter or happily enjoy this moment. Instead, she was troubled in her heart. Did she even hear what the angel was saying? Or did the mere sight of him cause her heart to stir in fear?
And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
Luke 1:26-29
Big trouble
In the Greek, the word used here, troubled, is: διεταράχθη, dietarachthē.
1298diatarássō (from 1223/diá, “through, to the limit,” intensifying 5015/tarássō, “trouble, stir up”) – properly, acutely distressed, “through and through” (note the force of the prefix, dia); greatly disturbed; “agitate greatly (Latin perturbare)” (Abbott-Smith), intensely going back-and-forth (to-and-fro) between inner thoughts and emotions (used only in Lk 1:29).
https://biblehub.com/greek/1298.htm
Oh Sisters, Mary wasn’t just fearful in her heart, she wasn’t simply afraid or frightened, she was terrified. She was so intensely fearful that God chose a word here that He never used again. I can think of a handful of biblical account where fear was an understandable response.
Fear Understood
Into the Mouths of Lions
So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lion’s den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”
Daniel 6:16
A Boy, 5 Stones and a Giant
44And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.
I Samuel 17:44
An old man, an angry God and an odd job
And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Genesis 6:13
Two Sisters and their dead brother
And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.
John 11:19
Jesus and the shadow of the Cross
And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
Luke 22:44
Can’t you agree? These, and so many more in the pages of the Bible, are times where diatarasso (dee at ar as’ so), a very troubled heart, would be appropriate. But, that’s not what God says. He tells us it was here when Gabriel greeted Mary (and he hadn’t even begun with his message from God for her) that her heart was troubled beyond anyone else’s we’d read about in all of scripture. Friends, as I think of all these people we just mentioned and the position they were in with circumstances in their lives, and then I think of Mary meeting God’s angel, it’s just beyond my own comprehension of what she may have felt that deserves this sole use of the word: diatarasso.
Do you know Diatarasso?
What’s troubling your own heart in such a very big way? I’m following along and praying for a few women who take their babies in for chemo and radiation treatments each week. I’ve prayed for and watch mommas and daddies give up their hope for answered prayers here on earth for their children in trade for new treasures in heaven. I’ve been crushed with friends who are widows, at very young ages. Part of me dies with each piece of news from family and friends that no one wants to ever face. My own heart has imagined Mary’s fear in the valley’s the Lord has walked with me through. And so I ask again, do you know your own diatarasso? What is it, friend?
Like Mary
We learned yesterday of God’s favor to us. How we are loved by Him, just like Mary. Do you think He knows we would fear in our own hearts just like her, too? Do you think God shuffles out judgement to His children when circumstances cause a troubled heart? He doesn’t. What do we hear so many people and in so many places when it comes to the Bible and fear? Something like, “do not fear” is said 365 times in the Bible. Now, I don’t know if that is true or not, but what I do know, is that God knew-knows-we would tend be fearful people.
Do not fear
No matter how many times God tells us, “Do not fear,” one thing we know is it’s because He loves us. He didn’t chastise Mary for have a more fearful heart than anyone else. He chose her. He didn’t slam down hail and fire on her head because she was acutely distressed. God doesn’t condemn us in our fear, but He assures us our fear is misplaced and that He is faithful.
He is faithful
Mary saw this out of the ordinary, very strange, and totally unexpected sight of an angel, and he was talking to her. She blew up inside in fear. This is far from the end of her story, but it’s an important part of it. We know she was highly favored among women–God’s perspective and other’s-but she wasn’t exempt from the very feelings we struggle with, too. Sometimes fear is the quickest reaction. Every time, God is faithful. What should we do, then, when too struggle between our thoughts and emotions?
Am I alone in my fears?
Am I the only God fearing woman who has a weakness here? I don’t think so. Like every loving parent when our child is afraid, and it doesn’t matter if they are a toddler or an adult, we want to comfort them in their fear. It’s no small matter to a child-being so afraid. It’s no smaller to a young adult, or old adult, making his/her way through unchartered and stormy seas of life. And, certainly, it’s not an easy thing to want to take away the fear of those we love with all our being, and be so limited in our flesh. But, unlike us, God possess the ability to deliver each of us from every one of our fears.
Delivered from fear
What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
Psalm 56:3
I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Psalm 34:4
The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
Psalm 34:17
Be Near Me Lord Jesus
I’ll close with this, and I hope you sing it often to remind you of God’s very truth “…be near me Lord Jesus, I ask you to stay close by me forever and love me, I pray.”
And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women
Luke 1:28
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Mary was looking into the face of someone who was supernaturally God’s messenger and yet in the flesh able to have a conversation right there in the middle of her home in Nazareth. Gabriel’s words are God’s words. What did the angel tell Mary?
Greetings
I am the worse, though intentionally getting better and teaching my son the same, when it comes to just jumping right into whatever I have to say. Two of my brothers have shown me the importance of a greeting before I begin with my voice or my text. Instead of, “So you know…” I know, almost always, begin with a greeting, “Good afternoon, Hello, How are you,” or something along those lines. If you think it doesn’t make a difference, I’d challenge you to give it a whirl, because it really does. A greeting is important because it allows the recipient to adjust their mind to your presence. If you’re a mom, I bet you are certain of this in reverse. Think about it. Has your child ever come up to you while you were in the middle of something that had your mind otherwise occupied? What happens? You don’t hear what they’re telling you, even if it’s said with urgency (like everything is with one of my boys), you don’t hear them fully, do you? See how significant a greeting is? In Bible times, it was customary to greet someone fully before diving into the thought or message that was to follow. Gabriel exemplifies this here when he appears before Mary. I wonder what she was doing at the time? Was she outside walking to/from gathering water, was she in the kitchen cooking, what she praying? We don’t know, but I tend to wonder about the little things. Regardless, she sees Gabriel and he greets her, getting her full attention.
Affirmations
After greeting her, the angel continues:
And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
Luke 1:28
highly favored, position from God
the Lord is with thee: position with God
blessed among women: position with others
As Gabriel began speaking, Mary began fearing, but God knew Mary was human, and in the flesh her reaction would be fear. So He, her creator and one who loves her most, starts off by affirming who she is. Mary was favored by God, God was with her and she was blessed among women. Can you imagine? This verse reminds me of my oldest son’s favorite verse out of the same Gospel.
And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
Luke 2:52
Blessed
It must matter to God how other’s see us, not because He wants our lives to portray vanity but because He wants our lives to characterize His son. Mary was blessed among women. This word, “blessed,” as used in Luke 1:28 occurs only one other time in scripture and both are ascribed to Mary. Yet, we see something amazing in scripture when we consider what God says of this young virgin appointed and chosen to be the mother of our Lord, and what He says of us, those who belong to Him.
Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has BLESSED us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens. For He CHOSE us in Him, BEFORE the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His FAVOR and will, to the praise of His glorious grace that He FAVORED us with in the BELOVED
Ephesians 1:3-8
Now, straighten up your crown
I can’t go on without first admitting I have a hard time swallowing this very statement I just used. You’ve probably seen the same meme/quote as have I, “Straighten your crown.” Just why I don’t love the sentiment is pretty complex, my deep thinking interrupts its obvious truth here, but I’m using it anyway. You see, we ARE favored and beloved, chosen and loved beyond our own comprehension by the same God who said these same words to Mary. So, next time you look in the mirror, next time you are in awe of this beloved and very important young woman out of Luke (as you should be), remember who Jesus says you are: chosen, beloved, favored.
Mirrors
My dear friend, with an AMAZING voice, serenaded her new husband at the wedding alter with a song that reflects so much of these truths. These things from the Lord are OF the Lord. If others see any favor in our lives, let it be because they see Jesus in us.
That’s a wrap for Day 2 in 25 Days with Mary, I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow.
Luke 1: 26And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.
Meet Mary
Mary was a young woman, a teenager by all accounts. When we consider the time period and culture, we can also assume she was well learned in Scripture, as any Jewish child would be- taught from birth. She knew all about and loved God, but she probably didn’t know how to read or write. She was devoted. She wasn’t a scrawny, weak, or helpless child. Instead, she was used to traveling through life on her feet and working day to night to serve her family well; not in an abusive way, but in a traditional, responsible, and beautiful way. Biblical scholars agree Mary was from the out of the way-not near the city or shore- and poorer part of Galilee, Nazareth. As was customary, father’s would promise their daughters to their future husbands when they were just teenagers. Unlike today where engagement and marriage have been all meshed up from even American’s earliest traditions, setting the stage of marriage began with an agreement made by the father of the bride and followed by betrothal (Mary was espoused, or betrothed to Joseph) which is much like our wedding ceremonies today: promises, vows, were made to one another then, followed a year later at some surprising point by marriage when the bridegroom came for his bride. If a betrothal was to be broken, it would take a decree of divorce. Young Mary was fully committed to her God and to her husband, Joseph.
Meet Gabriel
Fresh from the job of delivering God’s message to Zachariah, Gabriel shows up in Nazareth with an even more miraculous message for Mary. Sent from God, do not miss those important 3 words. We live among false teachers, liars and wolves in sheep’s clothing who are deceptive but definitely not sent by God. Be warned. Gabriel was sent by God to Nazareth. It was there Gabriel and Mary would meet by God’s divine appointment. Luke chapter one is the first mention of Nazareth in all of scripture, even the Old Testament, but soon Jesus of Nazareth would come to be known with familiarity; His followers, Nazarenes. Namesakes are pointed and purposed throughout God’s Word.
What’s in a Name?
What’s in a name? There are so many accounts of a given name told by God’s hand, and here in the first couple of verses of Luke chapter 1 we find a few more. The first, Gabriel. One of only two named angels in the Bible, Gabriel was again delivering the news of a baby to come. At this time, we know Elizabeth is 6 months pregnant. John the Baptist and Jesus Christ would be born with in a few months of one another, John having a slight advantage on arrival. It wouldn’t be the first time his presence on this earth came before Jesus’. This angel of the Lord told both Zechariah and Mary the name of their respective sons. There were no baby books, no polls about the best name and no family input: John the Baptist and Jesus Christ were given their names by God through Gabriel. By studying scripture we know God’s angels are created spiritual beings who possess strength, wisdom and obedience, always listening to, and sent by, the Lord. God chose Gabriel to share the news of a newborn baby coming to both Zechariah and his barren, menopausal wife, Elisabeth as well as to the young virgin, Mary.
Delivering Important News
Have you ever been part of a group where someone had to be the one to share big news? Who was chosen? Usually it’s not the wallflower in the scene. It takes a strong person to deliver important news. Here is God’s messenger, taking God’s message, to God’s people. His name: Gabriel, and it means, “God is my strength.” Look at the significance in this archangel’s Hebrew name! God does not miss a single detail in our lives, either!
Bless the LORD, ye his angels, that excel in strength, that do his commandments, hearkening unto the voice of his word.
Psalm 103:20
Mary’s Beginning
Though not the beginning of her young life, this day would be the beginning of the life of Mary we’d be privy to knowing. It was an otherwise ordinary day of her common life. Then God showed up. Mary was a virgin physically, but spiritually she was well practiced. She knew the Jewish law, she knew Jesus was coming and she was humbly living out her life devoted to Him. Because Mary was faithful in the things she knew were right, because she was a learner of God’s ways and a follower of the same, she was prepared for what she had no idea would come.
Are you prepared?
Friends, we should expect to hear from the Lord. Unlike Mary, we are privileged to be able to read and write, and we have His Word to read. Like Mary, we have opportunity to follow Him and His ways… if we choose to, every day. Are you listening for His voice? Are you waiting for something you’ve been in prayer over? Are you willing to listen when you hear Him call -through prayer, through His Word as you read, through godly counsel, through Biblical wisdom? I doubt you will see Gabriel or any other angel face to face today, but if you’re spending time with the Lord, He will be faithful to His Word, and you will hear from Him.
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Expect the Unexpected
No-one needs to tell anyone who is alive in 2020 that life can be unexpected. But, instead of living life coasting along easy street and throwing toddler tantrums when things are hard, uncomfortable and unexpected, we should expect the unexpected in this Christian life.
These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
John 16:33
Mary was not expecting the news received from the Angel’s announcement, but -and at the risk of reading ahead- we know she was willing to hear from her Lord. Consider whatever the Lord has for you, and ask yourself if you are willing to bend your ear, and your heart, to your Heavenly Father?
Bend your knees
I’m not sure where the emphasis falls in that challenge to your personally. Maybe it’s the “whatever” that leaves you closed up. It could be even just the idea of hearing from the Lord, knowing if you allow yourself to listen you’ll be required to respond.
Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.
Psalm 143:10
No matter what confounds you or where your struggle is right now, if you’re anything like me, the heart bends in sync with bending my knees. So I encourage you, go before the Lord and bend your knees. That’s a good place to start in preparing your heart, as did Mary, to make room for Jesus.
The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace.
Psalm 29:11
We will continue our 25 Days with Mary tomorrow. See you back here then!
The storm is churning out there in the Gulf of Mexico. We’re not quite close enough to the shore for the salty sprays to reach us, but the storm is undeniably here.
Majestic palms are whipping with a force that calmer days, most days, never know. The strength of the storm battles against the sheer determination each leafy green branch. Try as they may to hold on, fly away palms litter the beach, and cause drivers reflexively to duck their heads as the sky grows closer throwing these wayward branches into cars and roadways. The storm blows all around!
You probably know the account of Jesus and some of His apostles out on the boat when a horrendous storm tossed around their vessel. I remember my own boys playing with my beloved childhood toy: 3 men in a tub. Maybe you know the one I’m talking about: a round, yellow, floating tub, a flag atop a spring coming up through the middle of their boat, and three wobbly little men who fit inside perfectly.; their bottoms as round as their ship and much bigger than their heads. Each of them dressed for work: the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker. I am sure this piece of memorabilia made it to the “keep” box of treasures, ode to Andy and Toy Story.
Their vessel was buoyant and the little bell would ring when the water got a little too rough out on the seas of bedtime ‘tubbies’ for the butcher, the baker and candlestick maker. Indeed, if there’d been a bell on the ship where Jesus was fast asleep, maybe even those way back on shore would have heard it. THEY had an emergency.
They had an emergency
Mark 4:35-41. On that day, when evening had come, He told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” So they left the crowd and took Him along since He was already in the boat. And other boats were with Him. A fiercewind storm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke Him up and said to Him, “Teacher, Don’t you care that we’re going to die?” He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the sea. “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Then He said to them, “Why are you fearful? Do you have little faith?” And they were terrified and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey Him!”
Big Storm
I wouldn’t have been happy to have gotten caught out on the Gulf of Mexico today as this storm came up. Yet, there they were out in the middle of the sea-and it appears other boats were surrounding them, too- when the wind and the waves assaulted their boat. They didn’t miss the fierceness of the weather disturbance. Big storms are hard to miss; we definitely took quick notice this morning as the howling wind announced its arrival and began knocking over long lines of trash cans as if they were dominos along our street. It’s hard to miss the storm blowing in, and all too often we get fearful of the storm and what will happen to us through it.
It wasn’t the storm
Yes, it was a big storm out there on the sea. Yes, every one of the men on the boat were afraid as the sea waters crashed into their boat bringing with it a very real threat to their lives. They were afraid. They had an emergency. BUT they missed the point. It wasn’t the storm that caused their problem. It was how they responded to it; their reaction caused a storm much bigger than their otherwise perceived threat. (Oh dear, how convicting is that statement, Tamara?).
They missed the boat
(Pun intended!)
Their reaction to the storm caused their emergency, not the storm itself. Friends, what’s your storm? Those seeds of disarray you plant in your heart, those are the secrets women just like you tell themselves all the time. We need more women who look at their friend, who speak lovingly to a stranger, who are brave enough to look in the mirror, face their storms and ask: Where is Jesus? This is not a hypothetical question. Where is Jesus, Friend?
Storms Imagined
Storms in life are inevitable. IF you’ve somehow escaped rough and threatening seas in life, keep living, they’re coming. Or, maybe you’re like me, and you can make up your own storms with just your imagination. I can’t count how many real-life catastrophes I’ve gone through with my family over the years. Catastrophes that came complete with anxiety, fear, a deeply sunken heart and sick stomach. Yet, they were imagined. Thought up in my own mind and never, thank the Lord, realized. None of that stopped my reaction to them, though. The Lord gives us strong direction for these imaginations that cause us to disobey what we know is true and to stray from who He is in our lives.
From Blueletterbible.com (highly recommend!), we read more about verse 5, in particular:
e. Bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ: To battle against this carnal way of thinking and doing, our thoughts must be brought captive and made obedient to Jesus.
i. When we start to think in this carnal way, we must stop our thoughts, take dominion over them in Jesus, and not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. (Romans 12:2)
ii. Paul’s first application is towards the carnal, worldly thinking of the Corinthian Christians that made them despise Paul and his “weakness,” doubting his apostolic credentials. But Paul’s principle has a much broader application. We are not helpless victims or recipients of our thoughts. We can choose to stop our thoughts and bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Thoughts of lust, thoughts of anger, thoughts of fear, thoughts of greed, bitter thoughts, evil thoughts – they are part of every thought that may be and must be brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
Spiritual War needs Spiritual Weapons
On the boat and in our minds, storms imagined unfold a chain reaction of crazy thoughts and fears of what ifs and impossible outcomes. These are not our storms. These are storms that Jesus isn’t going to calm by changing our circumstances, but rather they are the tempest in our hearts that He can, will, and wants to soothe with His peace, the only real peace we will ever know. What storm is stirring in your mind? We fight flesh and blood with physical weapons, but they don’t work on spiritual warfare. Since we do not fight against flesh & blood, in the same way, our weapons need to be those fit for a spiritual battle.
Feared by demonic powers
Our spiritual weapons are scorned by the world but feared by demonic powers. When we fight with true spiritual weapons, then no principality or power can stand against us. “As the spittle that comes out of a man’s mouth slayeth serpents, so doth that which proceedeth out of the mouths of God’s faithful ministers quell and kill evil imaginations, carnal reasonings, which are the legion of domestic devils, that hold near intelligence with the old serpent.” (John Trapp)
Storms Realized
Then, as I said before, if you’ve lived long enough even things you couldn’t imagine turn about and stand-off with you, face to face. They become your storms realized. These storms rock our boats in ways we’d never choose. Oh, Friends, the storms I’ve been through in my lifetime! Some are too scary to revisit with even just the ghosts of words, others peek their heads in every now and again to see if, really, I’ve been able to scale their threats and keep on moving forward. Babies. I often wonder if there is a special place in heaven for the babies I’ve lost, and for those of so many friends who have also mourned likewise. Is there somewhere waiting, maybe along the river of life, for the millions of babies America has willfully-even in celebration-chosen to kill through abortion? I do not have the answer.
Too much to recount
It is just too much to recount. Here, I started to list the very real ways myself, friends, family and strangers who’ve crossed my ministry journey’s path have all suffered, but I just can’t give space to each of them right here. It’s not because they’re not very real and even more hurtful-I see your pain, truly! I hope and pray you can hear my heart right now. I don’t in any way want to sound as if I’m dismissing or diminishing in any way your turmoil. I’m not smoothing over anyone’s reality, but I am trying to be sensitive to others and be careful not to give anyone’s mind room to explode in imaginations that crumble them with fears they’d never think about otherwise. Since I can’t, due to time and white space limits, take each one’s trial from incept to current, I dare not be a dumping ground of things the evil one would then use to trouble the hearts of my sisters who are listening. At the same time, I want to encourage those of you who are struggling in their own “too much” right now.
When We are Weak
Sisters in Christ, my friends, women just like you struggle just like you are. It’s a lie from the pit of hell that you are alone in the pain you feel down in that valley. You are not alone, God promises to never leave us, and even more tangible in the flesh, you are not alone-there are other women who love the Lord and still know that very pain you’re suffering. I promise! After more than 30 years of living and listening to other women’s life stories, I am sure of it; you are not alone. Share your heart with someone who is safe-message or email me and I promise to listen and pray with you-but don’t allow yourself to be penned up thinking no one will understand. Someone will and feels just the same as you. Abuse, past abortions or any mistake you can’t take back, self-harm because you need to cry and feel as if there’s no one to turn to, addiction that is so secret you even surprise yourself some days, infertility, marriage problems that leave you on the brink of divorce, prodigal children, not wanting to be a better mom or wife because of any one or many of those intruding thoughts not yet taken captive to the obedience of Christ, losses that leave you seemingly hopeless, trudging through depression not even wanting to keep on keeping on, full time care of someone else either from the beginning of their life or suddenly with a tragic accident or diagnosis, death’s void or living’s fight that is just too much…so many avenues to the pain that overwhelms us in life.
We we can NOT, but HE CAN!
All these pains (and more) leave us weak beyond hope our flesh can muster. BUT, let me remind you…it’s in our weakness we know God more. It is there that He grows us in faithfulness to who He is. It is when we have no hope, no strength and even no care that He shows us that He, our God, is mighty and able; He is loving and full of grace and compassion. We we can NOT, but HE CAN! When we are weak and without strength to DO, we realize God IS who He says He is. I hope you’ll pop over on another post and read more about God in our weakness.
WEAKNESS ISN’T THE END OF LIFE
Weakness isn’t the end of life, it is an invitation and doorway to the very strength and power you need.
‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9)
Real or Imagined: Jesus is still the answer
The source of our struggle really does matter. Are we trying to awaken Jesus because our imaginations have triggered an emergency in our mind? Like the men on the boat who loved and followed Jesus, do we scream out to the Lord wondering what He’s doing as the waves come crashing in taking our minds deceptively away from the truth we know? We need to take those thoughts and turn them back to the authenticity of the Lord. Jesus was asleep, that is true. But He wasn’t struggling in his sleep. unaware of their surrounding storm. He was asleep and comfortable, His head was lying softly on a pillow…there was no emergency aside from the way they each reacted to their self-proclaimed, self-inflicted demise. We can learn something from these boat dwellers: when we’re with the Lord, the storms in life need not unravel us. We should, instead, remember the Lord is there with us, and He is in control of even the biggest disturbances the come upon us. He does care.
Jesus was in the back of the boat with his head on a pillow, and he was asleep. His disciples woke him and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re about to drown?”
Mark 4:38
The Real Hard Stuff
Well, the real hard stuff is sort of a misnomer, spiritual warfare, getting control of our mindset and attitude IS hard stuff, to be sure. But, this hard stuff is in contrast to those things. This real hard stuff is the things that happen in our lives, the things we have no control over.
The deepest valley
The diagnosis, the death, the detriment, all the disasters that really do try to kill us in a lot of ways; these are hard things. They have something in common with the broken and disillusioned thoughts we allow to take us astray. Their cause is different, their pain and perplexity is familiar, and their answer, too, is Jesus. When we find ourselves in the deepest valley, darkness looming on every side, when we have no control or choices to make that will pull us up out of the muck, we have Jesus. We have hope. We have the promise that will allow us to breathe one more breath, take one more step and think one more time that we will make it through…through-if we just lean into the Lord. When we have Jesus, we have exactly what we need; He’s not going to sleep through our crisis and leave us alone. Even if He doesn’t calm the storm around us in the moment, as He did for His men that stormy night, He will go with us and He will get us through it. In the mix, we will become more like Jesus, our faith will grow, and we will know that He is who He tells us He is. The valley is dark. Death’s shadow looms, and it is scary. But be encouraged, no shadow is possible in the absence of light. I know it’s scary to walk through life’s trials, but please remember these truths: God is with you, He will comfort you. You have no reason to fear…and you aren’t stuck; keep on walking.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Psalm 23: 4
So much to think about, so much TRUTH to meditate on. So much hope to live your life in today, and each new day the Lord gives you! Silence the lies you’ve been listening to, quiet your heart in God’s Word, and believe He is God, He is for you, He has a purpose in your pain, and He is faithful. Be encouraged, Friends. God is at work and He is good.
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