'That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!'
I don't know exactly what you are going through...but I am quite pretty sure of one thing:' sooner or later in life, we will all be faced by unexpected raging waves of life.'
Sooner or later it will happen. You might be going through tough times as I speak right now...
But remember that there is big difference between :
'being faced with raging waves in a Journey initiated by God' and 'being faced by raging waves in a journey initiated by yourself'.'
In the story mentioned above, Jesus is the One initiating the journey by saying ' let us go on the other side'.
When God starts a Journey involving you, He will start it with His words and He will tell you how it will end. Read what Jesus said: 'Let us go on the other side'.
Jesus never said: 'We will sink', or 'let's try to float on water'. That's the reason why Jesus got upset at his disciples by saying :'Do you still have no Faith?'
If you are faced with crushing waves in a journey that you have initiated yourself, feel free to either carry on or to quit.
But here are a few points to remember in order to see a God initiated Journey come to past:
1. The Journey is started by God Himself:
God speaks first.
God will speak to you through a revelation, a vision, His words. He tells the beginning and the end. He also tells you the instruction to carry out.
Before you get married, before you start your ministry, before you make that specific crucial life choice...ask yourself the question:
'Is God the One who initiated this or is it me?'
2. You have to obey the instruction:
' Imagine if the disciples had said :'No,we're not going.' God wants you to be part of the Journey He is starting. You part is to obey and go along. Many life journeys are not even started because people disobey!
3.When the waves of life come crushing, remain calm:
Of course, during the journey, life will throw a lot of stuff at you. And during those turbulent moments between departure and arrival, the temptation to swear, to get angry, discouraged, or even to lose faith in God will arise. But your stillness must rely on the initial word you heard from God that says: 'Let's go on the other side'.
If God said it then you will be on the other side.
Do you know what's even more awesome?
The Bible says that God finishes what He starts. The Apostle Paul encourages us to believe it when he wrote:
Isn't it awesome? God will finish the good work He started in you. There is a certainty about it. That's why I encourage you to let God be the initiator in every aspects of your life: 'your marriage, your relationships, your career, your ministry, your business and everything else...Let Him be the initiator because there is a guarantee that He will finish it. It's in His word. You must just confess it.
Let's just answer a key question:
Can God help me complete something He did not start in my life?
'Yes He can BUT there is no guarantee. God's grace is infinite, and I believe that in His Grace and Sovereignty, He may decide to complete it with you.
We all have different circumstances, some of us gave our lives to Jesus at a stage where we had already built things before we met Him. It does not mean that He won't get involved in what we have already started, however there is no guarantee. He might destroy certain things in your life, to let space for new things...God is sovereign and will decide what to do.
Let's all remember this:
'God speaks first, He initiates the journey (not you),
we listen and obey,
when the waves crush on us,
we remember the original word,
and we will reach the other side.'
And here is a challenging question:' Are you doing things that God did not initiate?'