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Through the Storm

/ pastorpete51 / Leave a comment

Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you. Acts 27:23-24

Everyone goes through storms; whether self-inflicted  blunders or ones over which we have no control like sexual abuse. God doesn’t give us much guidance in how to live storm free, but the Bible is chock full of ideas on how the make it through them.

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Paul found himself in just such a situation as he was being shipped off in chains to stand trial because of his faith. He discovered the helplessness we all experience when we are not the captain of our ship. As his ship sailed off to sea Paul was to the outward observer the person least in control of the ship. The ship’s owner was in a hurry and the captain decided the weather was fine. The sailors hoisted up the sails and the paying passengers just enjoyed the sunshine on the deck. But no matter their position in that ship, they all were headed towards the same storm.

People use all different ways in facing difficulty. The Owner yelled at the captain to get things under control. The captain yelled at his crew to work harder. The soldiers aboard probably complained that the sailors had no idea what they were doing and the passengers huddled in fear below decks. But when the waves came sloshing into the boat Paul just kept doing the same things he did on sunny days. Paul served God and prayed. The question isn’t what kind of storm we are facing, but  can find a way to keep praying and serving God right in the middle of it?

Promises of God

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 By which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust    2 Peter 1:4

When we were first married I remember on our kitchen table we had a promise holder shaped like a loaf of bread. In it were many promises yet we rarely actually pulled one out and read it. Now, imagine that you were invited to stay at a friend’s house. He gives you a room that has a dresser drawer filled with one hundred dollar bills. Imagine further that your friend tells you that he has specifically put that money there for you to use any time you want. Wow! I think you would want to stay at that friend’s house as often as you could! That is exactly what God has chosen to do for us. He has sent us an invitation, but not just to visit. God has invited us to become members of His family. As family members we have access at any time to all the resources of His family. Whatever we need is in that dresser drawer of promises which Peter calls exceedingly great and precious.

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Every day on the streets of San Francisco; one of the wealthiest cities in the U.S. are people begging for money. No matter their motives, by their very act of begging they are confessing that they have less than they need. Their life is dependent on the generosity of strangers. But our God is no stranger. We do not have to beg for His spare change. God has loved us, chosen us, brought us to His home and adopted us as children. There in the top dresser drawer in our room He has placed exceedingly great and precious promises. They will always be available to us any time we gratefully put them to use in our life!

How Is Your Vision?

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“Why don’t these glasses that I have had less than a year help me  read anymore?”  I complained to my optometrist at my annual eye exam.

“Have you noticed those spots on your eyes.?” she asked patiently as she held up a mirror.  There I could see dark patches on my  irises which once were clear blue. Then I realized that everyone else could see my problem except for me. Jesus said that before we can help anyone else we have to deal with our own weaknesses.

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You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5

Once  I accepted that I needed help,I went to Saint Luke’s Cataract and Vision Institute; where I discovered that  I needed surgery. As the result of a lifetime of overexposure to sun at work I had developed something called pterygiums.  In the same way that seeing too much, had dimmed my vision whatever we focus the eyes of our hearts on determines our ability to see spiritually. As we allow our eyes to become calloused by what we see in our world, we will see less and less of God’s face.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Matthew 5:8

After my surgery some nights have been painful and I needed to wear a protective eye patch for a while. Part of the process was getting eye drops every day. Because they stung I dreaded each time my wife reminded me that it was time for my drops; but I knew that these prevented infection and promoted healing. God restores our spiritual eyes in the same way with His healing balm. Though it may sting for a moment as our eyes fill tears of repentance; at the end we will be able to say, “I once was blind but now I see!”.

I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Revelation 3:18

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