Psalm 46:1-2 ‘God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea’
DAILY READING; Luke 2:21-52; Ezekiel 38-39; Isaiah 61
From 1954 until 1960, Martin Luther King Jr. was the pastor of the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church. It was the only church he ever pastored and the site where he began his Civil Rights activism.
He was just 26 years old when he was appointed leader of the civil rights campaign in Montgomery, Alabama. However despite being young, he was a person of tremendous courage. He endured vilification, beatings, imprisonments, death threats, his house was firebombed. What kept him going was his strong sense of God’s call upon his life. King often received terrifying threats from the Ku Klux Klan and other extremist groups. One night when he answered his phone, a menacing voice on the other end, threatened to kill him and burn his house if he didn’t leave the town within three days. On hearing this, King was unnerved and very afraid – for himself, for his wife and for his little children. As he pondered on the threat, he realized that on his own, he was weak. He knew he needed God to help him. So he bowed his head in prayer and asked the Lord for strength. And it seemed to him that moment that he experienced the presence of God like never before. It seemed as though he could hear the quiet assurance of an inner voice, saying, “Stand up for righteousness, stand up for truth. God will be at your side forever.” Almost at once his fears passed from him. His uncertainty disappeared and he felt ready to face anything. Though the outer situation remained the same, yet God had given him inner calm.
Three nights later, his home was bombed. Thankfully no one was hurt. King accepted the news of the bombing calmly. His experience in prayer a few nights before had given him the strength to face it. He knew that God was able to help him overcome the storms and trials in the journey ahead. This trust in God strengthened Martin Luther King, Jr. to lead peaceful protests that eventually resulted in the elimination of social injustice and racial discrimination in America.
Often in the midst of a storm, the tendency is to wonder, “Where is God”? But the Bible says God is an ever present help in the time of trouble. In other words, He is present right there in the storm.
In Mark 4 Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake.’ So they took Jesus in the boat and started out. But soon a fierce storm came up and high waves began breaking into the boat, and it began to fill up with water. As the disciples desperately called upon Jesus, He arose and rebuked the storm and there was calm.
The lesson for us here is that; following Jesus doesn’t exempt you from life’s storms. Jesus was in the boat and could surely have prevented the storm in the first place, but He permitted the disciples to go through it because He was certain they would get through it.
It’s comforting to know that God is in control in the tough times of life and will help us always to triumph. Serving the Lord doesn’t exempt you from life’s storms, but it protects you when you’re in them. Jesus promised, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33 NIV).
When you are faithfully serving God, you can be sure that He is always with you in every situation. He said in Isaiah 43:2 ” When thou pass through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:..’
Even those times the storm seems toughest and the night appears darkest, Jesus is still right there in your boat. The winds may be strong, the circumstances may look tough, but God will carry you through it all and give you strength to overcome.
Though the storms will come and winds will blow, we are destined to be more than conquerors. Though we may go through fire and through water, certainly, God will bring us out into a wealthy place.(Psalms 66:12).
Despite the tough times, you will come back—even stronger than you were before. God knew that you would experience times of being stretched and being compressed. However, He has designed the storms to end up making you better. You may bend, but you are getting right back up again!
Sometimes, the reason for the storm, is because you are about to move to a higher place in destiny.
Therefore rather than be troubled, let it be a time of increasing spiritual strength. Time spent in studying the Word, prayer and worship will make you become grounded in faith and ready to overcome in every battle.
Surely as long as we remain strongly connected to God, we will triumph over every storm and keep soaring to greater heights.
PRAYER: Lord, I thank You for the grace to stay rooted in Your Word and to abide strong in faith despite the oppositions I may face. I know that You are too faithful to fail me, and I will keep thriving and flourishing in Jesus Name.
QUOTE:
True success is not verifiable in the fact that a man has never fallen before but in the fact that he did not only fall but also got up. WORDBITE 222.