How to face the storms
of life
"The wise man in the storm prays to God, not
for safety from danger,
but for the deliverance from fear. It is the storm within that endangers
him, not the storm without." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
It is our fear of the storm that paralyzes us, not the storm. Our
reaction to a crisis is what determines whether we sink or swim
with it.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, "The only thing we have to
fear is fear
itself," which is the reason why General George Patton said,
"I never take
counsel of my fears."
The problem with so many is that they listen to their fears. The
brave
man is also afraid, but his fear does not paralyze him into inaction.
In
a little boat in a storm, the Lord was sound asleep in the back
and the
disciples were afraid. They woke him up. They were panicky and he
was not. "And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how
is it that ye
have no faith?" Their lack of faith produced the fear. This
is the reason
why Emerson said that the wise man prays for the deliverance from
fear.
It is the fear, the fear within us, that causes the problem, not
the storm
outside.
How do we react to the storms in our lives? We all have storms,
but we
do not all react in the same way to the same storm. The storms in
our
lives show whether we trust in the Lord or rely upon our own resources.
By ourselves we really are powerless against mighty storms, just
as the
disciples knew that their efforts were futile to prevent the boat
from
sinking from the violence of the waves. They were doomed and did
not
know what to do. They needed to turn to God for help.
When Christ awoke he immediately called upon God's power to calm
the sea.
David said "I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered
me
from all my fears."
Notice God delivers us from our fears, not necessarily from
the thing of which we are afraid, but from our fear of it. The storm
may
continue to rage, but we now are supported by the power of Almighty
God.
If God be for us who can be against us? Again David said, "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."
We sometimes have to walk though the valley, but we do not need
to fear
when the Lord is with us. If we truly believe that "The angel
of the LORD
encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them,"
then
we can face the storms of life with confidence and not with fear.
We so often
sing, "With Christ in the vessel we smile at the storm."
The Lord told his disciples, "There is no fear in love; but
perfect
love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth
is not
made perfect in love." So what casts out fear? Perfect love
and faith do.
Why are we so fearful? Could it be our lack of faith, or lack of
love for
the Lord. ?
So we need to pray, as Emerson suggested, for deliverance from fear,
from the storm within that endangers us. Jesus was calm within regardless
of the storms around him. Even as he stood on trial for his life,
the
taunts of the crowd and the blows from the soldiers did not disturb
his inner
peace. Our Lord was living out in practice what Isaiah had said
the
Lord would do for us. "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace,
whose mind is
stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." Christ's prayers
in the
Garden of Gethsemane sustained him so that he resolutely fulfilled
the
will of God.
We can live in perfect peace in spite of the storms swirling around
us.
We need to keep our minds stayed on the One who is able to deliver
us.
We need to pray without ceasing so that God is involved in every
aspect of
our lives. Our God is able to deliver us from the fear of the storms
that
arise in our lives. Our God is bigger than any storm we will ever
face.
Isaiah tells us that our God is "a strength to the poor, a
strength to
the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from
the heat,
when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall."
Believing in the power and love of our almighty and merciful heavenly
Father, we can say with David, "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."
by Robert J. Lloyd
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