Sometime he calms the storm.  As you can all see, I have recently changed my background, title, and even the song lyrics that I had at the top of my journal. I felt that it was time for a change since everything else in my life is changing too. 

The song is "Sometimes he calms the storm" which is sung by Scott Kripane if I'm not mistaken. It is a gorgeous song, and if you've never heard it...I hope you will seek it out. It is beautiful, and very touching.  This song always comforts me.

Tonight I would like to talk about "The Storm"...How God calms the storm, and then how sometimes he chooses to let the storm rage on and calm the child.

In Luke 8: 22-25 You find Jesus and a ship of his disciples.

22. Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth.
23. But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water; and were in jeopardy.

Jesus was sleeping, and all of a sudden that storm came down...I don't know about anyone else, but me...I have what could almost be classified as a phobia for thunder storms (when lightening is involved). Here I can just get this mental picture of Jesus on the ship peacefully resting, not worried about the storm one bit...and then Me (like the disciples) frantic with the current conditions of the seas (for us sometimes it is the seas of life), wondering why Jesus is sleeping, and not caring what happens to his children...so I go over and I wake him...now lets continue with the scripture...

24. And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm.
25. And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

All right, so the disciples were frantic, worried, scared out of their minds right? Right...in this mental picture I've got going I am frantic, worried, and scared out of my mind too...and so we wake Jesus up...(my words) "Jesus, this is bad, I'm going to die, do you not care that I'm going to perish?" Sometimes we get overwhelmed by life, and it seems like when it rains it pours, and when it pours you have the thunder the lightening and the flooding all at once...we have things going along nice and smooth, and then WHAM BOOM BANG you've the mother of all storms in your life, and you are scared, and wondering where Jesus is, and why he isn't helping you...why does he not care?  BUT...but then, Jesus simple rises up, and I can see it in my minds eye how he would merely hold up his right hand and in a soft, calm voice simply whisper "Peace. Be Still." And immediately, the winds cease, the waters become peaceful, and the storm dissipates, and you are left with a calm.  All the while, you (or me lets not forget me, or those disciples there either) are just standing their, your mouth to the floor you are in awe of your Savior...and He asks you where you faith is...It never occurred to us that perhaps Jesus was sleeping (not because he is like my daddy and could sleep through world world III taking place in the middle of his living room) because he had everything in control, you were afraid that you would perish, but he knew the plans he had for your life, and they did not involve disappearing forever because of this storm. 

But what if Jesus had not calmed the storm?  That physical, literal storm, OR that emotional, mental, internal storm raging inside of you that you felt would surely claim your life?  I'm a big "what if" person...which isn't always a good thing, but sometimes it pays off to be inquisitive...What if Jesus had chosen to remain asleep, and let that storm rage on?  Well let us turn to a similar, yet very different story in the bible found in Acts 27: 10-11, 14-26

10. And said unto them, Sirs, I perceive that this voyage will be with hurt and much damage, not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives.
11. Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul.

Paul warned them...Don't you just feel like a little kid sitting in front of your great grandmother as she tells you a story and your on the edge of your seat wondering what's going to happen next??? Now let's see what happens...

14. But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon.
15. And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.

I am thinking that means, they gave up controlling the ship and let the wind have control of their vessel...isn't that just like us...sometimes we get so overwhelmed so instead of calling out to Jesus we just give up and let the storm control us, and then Jesus steps out for us and speaks to us when all along all we had to do was call for Jesus and he would have come on the scene...okay, continuing with the story...

16. And running under a certain island which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat:
17. Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven.

Oh no, you mean we don't only have a storm to worry about, but the storm now has us stuck on an island and our boat is all messed up and we have to repair it, AND THEIR IS QUICKSAND...oh no...what now...what are we supposed to do...let's continue

18.And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day lightened the ship;
19. And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.
20. And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and so small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.

That's it...we can't guide our ship because we can't see the stars (I'm pretty sure during this time, they still figured out where they were going by the stars and their positions to them) because this storm has the thick clouds covering everything...I mean come on "neither SUN nor stars" if those clouds covered up and hide the sun, those were some mighty THICK clouds...that was one wadoozie of a storm don't you think...but we can get ourselves into some mighty "wadoozie" type storms from time to time too...Remember verse 10, Paul had warned these men that this voyage was going to be dangerous and could cost them their lives...but they didn't listen to him, they ignored the warning that God sent them through Paul and they embarked on a deadly, dangerous trip...Don't we do that?  We seek out counsel from others, be they friends, church members, family, etc...and yet when we have asked for their advice, we say "thanks, but no thanks" and then go on about our business...Well, I know I'm guilty of having done that to God a time or two myself...Where I would pray "God, I need your help, and guidance, could you please let me know if this "voyage" is your will for my life", and even though a felt that apprehension in my heart which told me God didn't think this was such a good idea, I went ahead and forged into my "voyage" of such, because "Oh, well I believe this more than what God said." Oh, that's a big mistake, that's always got you looking for trouble people...we need to be careful (I need to be careful, Im talking to me too)...Then when we get way out in the middle of this "voyage" or circumstance, or whatever it may be in our life...we find that a huge wind comes bringing in a deadly storm (I know, I've been there not to long ago), and all of a sudden we are remembering that warning that God sent us...in this instance those men were getting to be reminded of that warning by Paul once more...lets read on...

21. But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss.
22. And now I exhort you to be of good cheer: for there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship.
23. For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I serve,

What...what...what is this? Oh my, you mean we aren't going to die?? We are going to live, we will survive? You mean it is possible that we could come out of such a low, and desperate situation and still have our life to be thankful for?? How could this be...when things reek of such despair around us?? Well, let's see what happens next...

24. Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
25. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer: for I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me.

God is going to save us..."Hip Hip Hurray, Hip Hip Hurray!"...I can just picture it...some men standing around with a look of wonderment and amazement on their face, thinking "How could God save us now, after we deliberately ignored his warning." others feeling that immediate "good cheer" that Paul said they could claim...and still others who whispered words of praise to this wonderful God, as their fear began to release the hold it had on their hearts...

verse 37 tells us that there were "two hundred threescore and sixteen souls" on this ship...Now if God is going to save those people from their storm, and spare their lives, and let them come out a little wiser, and a little more ready to heed his words...Don't you think he will save you from the middle of your storm???  If you will go on to finish this story in the book of Acts, you will see that the men were ship wrecked for awhile, and that just because they knew now that God was going to save them, that didn't spare them from some hardships...but it did increase their faith, to see and know that God had brought them as far as he had, and that he would bring them to the end of their journey in one peace, and safe!! 

I may not be able to tell you what your storm is, I may not even be able to tell you I understand how you must feel to be stuck in a boat, with such a fierce storm raging around you...but I have been through some storms of my own...some of which were brought on not by myself but others, and some of which were brought on by my own unwillingness to listen to God or seek out his help...and I hope that the scriptures and maybe some of my own words, that I shared today can be of some comfort and can help you see that things may look bad now, but if you will let him, God will be in control and you will come out of it with the calm factor...even in the worst of my storms, God has always sent someone or something to let me know that even though he wasn't calming that storm, even though he wasn't going to tell the winds and waves to "Be still." and make everything calm on the outside...he was still the God of my soul, and quite capable of calming the storm of fear raging within me, regardless of the circumstances and storms blazing on the outside.  You may have a member of your church, or a friend from a group at school offer you a word of encouragement that lets you know God is still there and he's going to keep you safe even while this storm flares on...but it may not always be a person, so often we look for another human face to be the answer, some word that they have to offer...but many times it has been a simple phrase that was brought to my memory that encouraged me and opened my eyes enough to see that God was still protecting me...or there have been times where I simply let my bible fall open and asked God to speak to me through whatever my eyes landed on, and many times he has...and I've seen just how much that fear in my heart was crippling me, and keeping me stuck in the middle of that storm, and was then able to see how even though that fear was present in my life..God's presence outshone that of the crippling emotion/circumstance/depression/lost job/tragedy/etc...

The outcome may not always be what we expect, or want, but if God is in control, it will be what is best.  So inspite of the storms that we all may encounter along life's path...I hope you will keep in mind, that God is the God of the calm factor, and he can bring you through any storm you face, if you will just trust him and put it in his hands. 

Mel-o-dy!!!! You have NO idea how much I needed that just at this very moment! My mother is driving me C*R*A*Z*Y.... I won't eleborate, but Geezzz!!!! she's getting on my last nerve! Thanks So much for obeying God and sharing that!
How did your move go and How are YOU doing??? I sure have missed talkig to you! Eamil me when you get a chance and let me know! I Love you Mel!

Hey Melody!! Your entries are always so encouraging to me!! I'm so glad that Jesus Calms Our Storm..It reminds me of a song our youth-group sings at church called "Why Should I Worry"..It talks about the same storm that Jesus calmed that you mentioned in your entry..One part of the verse says, "He calmed their storm, just like He will mine, if I'll just remember he lives deep inside" I love ya girl & I"m praying for you!

Hi Melody!! Wow, Ur such an encouragement!! :) Thanx 4 posting that, I needed it. If you've seen my latest post, U'd understand why!!! Anywayz, TTYL!!!! BYE!

Beautifully written... ...*BIG SIGH*

It's so good just to sit in his presence,
Just to drink the sweet water of peace,
Just to walk with him in green pastures,
For it's in worship, my Spirit's restored...

(The actual chorus is:

It's so good just to sit in your presence Lord,
Just to drink the sweet waters of peace...
Just to walk with you in green pastures Lord,
For in Worship, my spirit's restored!

You'll never know how much your words of encouragement have ministered to me...and how much God has used you to remind ALL of us: Who is in control...*BIG SIGH*

God BLESS.

That is such a beautiful song you've got up top there, I've never heard it sung, but the lyrics alone are masterful!! Anyway, you write such amazing journal entries! That is one of my favorite Bible stories, and, of course, no matter how many times I hear it, I think about it in a different way. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts!! God bless, and ttyl!

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