Sunday service was excellent. I felt the power of God and his forgiveness like I haven't before. We played for almost an hour, and I could have played for the rest of the day. I am in desperate need of touch and guidance, and Sunday's service helped tremendously. I have been blessed to feel an emphasis of God's peace for the last few weeks, and I am now the emphasis has shifted to love. I am so grateful that I know Jesus, even though I only know a small portion of who he is. I am constantly humbled by his concern for me. In my life, people shift into and out of my concern, but God doesn't operate that way.


Mark 4:39&40 (New Living Translation) 39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

My question today, is how do you proclaim peace in a hostile environment?

Chapter 4 of Mark tells of how Jesus had ministered to a large crowd all day before loading up on the boat to cross the water. His message that day revolved around the power of God's Kingdom, and the consequences of not utilizing that power. He spoke privately to the disciples after the crowds had dispersed, intent on explaining the beauty of the power of God. Despite hearing the message on power and the absolute submission of everything and every situation to that power, the group was gripped with fear as death seemed to snap at their feet. During all of the chaos of the storm, the disciples were frantically rushing about, trying everything in their power to ensure their safety. The last security that they tapped was the sleeping Jesus. He stood, proclaimed peace, and then questioned their lack of faith in Him.

If anyone should have understood the power of Christ, shouldn't it have been them? They no doubt saw examples daily of the miraculous power of God, and they had just listened to lessons on that same topic for an entire day! Still, they let fear take control when things got dicey. Why do we consistently do that? I see examples daily in my own life and the lives of those around me that shout "WE GOT IT - NO HELP NEEDED!" It is only when the flood waters threaten the rooftop, and the fire starts to char the front door that we finally look elsewhere for rescue. Our strength has become our weakness, and our knowledge the final nail in the coffin. God is standing, reaching, shouting for my attention, as I desperately follow the route to destruction. I am amazed that He doesn't tire of watching me try to go over the falls again and again. I am glad that He saves me from myself, but I am embarrassed that he has to.

Faith in God is a curious thing. It cannot be touched or felt with human hands, or observed by sound or sight. It is elusive, and specific to each individual. This makes it hard for me to explain the necessity of it to those that don't already have it. I know from my experience that my faith becomes real when nothing else can step in to bring resolution to the situation at hand. In those moments when nothing else makes sense, or no other possibility can explain away the results, I can't produce touchable evidence of the presence faith, but I can't validate the results any other way. Faith and the realization of faith only comes from a relationship with God. Faith in any forum or environment is at the mercy of the limitations of the provider of that faith - we can only trust someone as much as they can be trusted. The only one that has never and will not ever let me down in any situation is God. The trust that comes from that realization is faith.

It is by that faith that I can stand and proclaim peace in the swirling winds of chaos and destruction. The faith that God will not put more on me than I can stand allows me to breathe easier when fear grips my soul. My bible tells me that everything that ever hopes to affect me or cross my path has to submit power, method, capability, action, intent and capacity to God before it can proceed. Knowledge of this single fact is what gives me the confidence to stand in the face of immanent destruction and proclaim victory and deliverance when all I can see is death and terror. If you are like me, and you sometimes cannot see how a situation will pan out, ask God to renew your faith. You will not leave that conversation in the same shape.