In the Storm of Life

2 Corinthians 1:10-11
He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, 11as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.

Matthew 25:34-40
"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'


I have given you these two scriptures tonight because these are the scriptures I have to grasp onto. In this season of my life I have had to ask for help and frankly I don't like to. We truly cannot live life alone, no matter how much we want to be.

Has anyone seen the old movie, "The Bounty" it was a movie about the ship called the Bounty, hence the name of the movie. Anyway the ship tried to round the bottom of South America and they encounter a storm. Now what caught my attention is that none of the sailors were allowed to go below deck but were forced to work on deck securing rigging, sails, etc. In the same way I am realizing that we are all on this ship of life and when the trials (storms) hit us, we can't hide but we need everyone helping to get the ship through safely.

Finding Our Way

Proverbs says that people without a vision perish. How true that is becoming in the present day. I look around and see men and women scared of what might happen. The economic crisis of late has gripped the hearts of Christians and Non-Christians alike and I question why. Do we not have a vision, or goal, that we know God will bring us to or are we unsure that God will see us through.

In the word God says: But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:33-34. Most of Matthew 6 is devoted to Jesus telling his disciples to not worry about what they will eat, what they will wear, or where will they live. If God devoted a chapter of his word to tell us this, then why as Christians do we worry about the worldly economy. I challenge all of you tonight to not look to the government to solve your problems but look to God and as for his provision.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. Psalm 118:8-9

A New Beginning

Psalm 118:10-13

10 All the nations surrounded me,
but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
11 They surrounded me on every side,
but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
12 They swarmed around me like bees,
but they died out as quickly as burning thorns;
in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
13 I was pushed back and about to fall,
but the LORD helped me.

I have been following the Lord and have gone where he wanted me to go and found only hardship and pain. For months I felt like Joshua, standing at the foot of the walls of Jericho asking God, ok now what (paraphrased of course). Like Joshua I have had to follow some commands that I been hard to say the least but I obeyed. I marched around this perverbial city over and over, day after day, week after week, and month after month praying that God's promises stay true. In the course of my marches I have spoke into other lives, found myself spending hours reading the words of the Lord and finding truth that I never knew was in it. Psalm 118 is a special place that God and I have been living for a while and in the coming months I will be sharing truth and insights that I have found in the 29 verses of the Psalm (stay tuned).
In conclusion today I would like to leave you with some simple words. If life is pushing you back and the enemy is tearing at you like a angry lion, stand. If the rent is due, the kids are screaming, and your boss is telling you your worthless, Stand. And if life is just to hard and it seems that there is no end to your troubles, STAND. Because that's all we are called to do, and that's all God expects of us. In Ephesians chapter 6 verse 13 it says "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand."
I found this quote from the movie "Rocky Balboa" and I thought it was so good I had to share it with you.
It ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done! Now if you know what you're worth then go out and get what you're worth.