They immediately went down into the inside of the ship and woke up Jesus and crying out to him said, “Master, we are about to die!” In other words they were saying, “We are about to die here. Do something about it. Don’t you even care?”
I can see Jesus calmly walking up the stairs to the deck of the ship holding on as the waves tossed the ship to and fro. He then sharply rebuked the wind and the waves and immediately they ceased and became calm.
Jesus then looked at his disciples and asked them this question, “Where is your faith?” Jesus was reminding them that they had seen him perform miracles, he had healed the sick, caused blind eyes to see, made the lame to walk again, raised the dead and cast out demons. He had taught them about faith, and yet they believed that they were about to die if Jesus didn’t do something.
Many times we find ourselves in the storms of life. Suddenly a loved one dies. Suddenly you lose your job. The bills are piling up and you are getting further and further into debt with no end in sight. Maybe a car ran a stop sign and hit your only car sending it to the repair shop for several weeks.
In my own experiences in life I have been through some major storms. I have been through 5 surgeries. I spent 22 days in the hospital in January 1994 and almost died 3 times while there. I have been jobless, homeless and have had my car repossessed.
In 2006 I woke up in so much pain that I drove myself to the emergency room at a local hospital in Fort Worth, Texas. After running some blood tests, I was admitted to the hospital and was there for 4 days. I was in pain. I felt alone. I had no one to comfort me.
After 4 days the medical doctor in charge of my case informed me that I had liver problems and must see a liver specialist as soon as possible. I was discharged and sent home.
Two months later I saw the liver specialist and after a brief conversation he told me, “Tom, the medical tests have shown that you have end stage living failure and you must get a liver transplant as soon as possible.” That statement hit me like a ton of bricks.
The storms will come when you least expect it. In my walk with God I have learned how to get through the storms in life. There are many examples in the Bible that teach us to trust God and believe his Word. He will see you through to the other side.
Here are 5 things that I have learned that have helped me, and they can help you, too.
1. Seek the Lord when the storms come.The disciples immediately looked for Jesus and when they found him, they woke him up and told him what the problem was. I’m not suggesting that God is asleep and doesn’t know your problems. He never sleeps and he never slumbers. He is always there for you. Seek him and you will find him.
2. Trust in God and in His Word.
“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” – Romans 10:17
“And all things, whatsoever you shall ask in prayer, believing, you shall receive.” - Matthew 21:22
“All things are possible to him that believes.” – Mark 9:23
3. Speak to the Storm.
“Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm.” – Luke 8:24
“For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” – Mark 11:23, 24
You have a voice activated faith. When the storms of life come, speak and rebuke the storm. If something seems like a mountain and is stopping you, speak to your mountain and command it to move. You have authority over storms and mountains!
Take authority over the situations in your life according to the Word of God. Jesus gave you the authority to heal the sick, cast out demons and raise the dead back to life. You have the authority to take dominion over everything God has given you! You are backed up by the Word of God!
4. Walk in Confidence
God is for you, not against you. He wants you to succeed. Jesus came that you might have an abundant and satisfying life, and live it to the full, until it runs over!
5. All Things Will Work Together For Your Good.
“And we know that God causes all things to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” – Romans 8:28 (NLT)
No matter what you are going through in life right now, God will cause it to work out in your favor. We may not understand the trials, and we may not even like the trials we are going through, but know that God is for you and will work everything out to your good.
Josie and I are so thankful for each of you who pray for us and who support our ministry financially. We do pray for you. If we can pray for any of your needs, please fill out the form below and we will stand in agreement with you in prayer.
We also would like for you to pray for us. We need your help. We have lost the lease on our home and must move out by the end of this month. The owners are selling the house and we have a short time to move. We have located another house in the same neighborhood which is for lease and it would meet our needs for the ministry and a place to live.
We will be meeting with the owner tomorrow morning to discuss leasing the house. If we lease the house we are required to put up three months’ rent in advance (approx. $525.00). The monthly rent payments will be approx. $174.00 which is a great deal for us. The house is large and spacious and we can still hold our Bible studies and church services in the house.
When the youth who come to our Bible studies found out that we would be moving it broke their hearts. They thought we were leaving them and we assured them that we will stay in the neighborhood and still hold the Bible studies with them and will also start having a children’s church for them. They were very excited when we told them.
It would break our hearts if we had to leave the area where we are making a difference and impacting the lives of others.
Please help us financially and sow your best gift to God. The size of your gift doesn’t matter. It can be $5… $10… $20… $30… $50… $100 or more. Please sow your best gift today to help us stay and share the Gospel in the neighborhood that God has opened up for us to minister to the people.
Your seed-faith gift makes it possible for Tom Bice Ministries to take the life-saving message of Christ to the world.
Sow your best gift to God today.
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Tom Bice Ministries is a non-profit ministry registered in the United States. Your donation is tax deductible as allowed by law.
"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." - 3 John 2
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