By: Christine Martin
As the floodwaters rose higher, William knew he needed to evacuate his home. He lived in the lowlands and the water was becoming a threat as it continued to rain. His neighbor, Ralph, lived on a hill and the water wasn’t even close to his front door. William looked in that direction and he saw his neighbor and friend waving him over. William carefully made his way up the hill and Ralph welcomed him in. William thanked him for his kindness and said it was nice to have friends in high places.
Like William, we often find ourselves in the floods of life. Sometimes, there are literal floodwaters. Other times, we find ourselves feeling as though we are drowning in the trials and sorrows and hardships of life. If we look Heavenward, we will see God welcoming us with outstretched arms. He is our haven of rest, and in Him, we will find shelter from the storm. He is our greatest friend, and you can’t get higher than that. When the floodwaters of life start rising, just remember that we have a friend in the highest place.
Living in Tennessee, we have had some pretty severe storms. Last year, we saw a tornado outside our front window! So far this spring, we have had tornado watches and warnings, severe thunderstorms, high winds, hail, lots of heavy rain, flash flooding, and power outages. It can be scary. It’s nice to know I’ve got a friend in the highest place.
Today, I drove to church in the rain. As my windshield wipers were clearing my windshield, it got me thinking. When it’s raining and you’re driving, you really are relying on the windshield wipers to clear your windshield so that you can see.
You try to adjust the wipers to be just the right speed, but as you go along, you have to change that speed. When your wipers are on the slower setting, they have a little pause before they come up again. Sometimes, it’s hard to tell what speed you have them on and when that pause takes place, you find yourself wondering if maybe they won’t come back up again, but then they do–sometimes just in time to clear the view again. They’re reliable, most of the time.
As the rain falls harder, you wonder if they will be able to clear the windshield fast enough and often, you have to keep speeding them up. Sometimes, it’s raining so hard that your windshield wipers just can’t get the job done fast enough, and you have to pull over and wait for the rain to let up. This happened to my Aunt and I when we were driving through Alabama a few years back. We literally couldn’t see the road in front of us!
Sometimes, windshield wipers stick. Sometimes, they break under the pressure of snow or ice. One winter years ago, I was driving to college one day, and when I turned my windshield wipers on, one of them flew right off the van! Windshield wipers are not always reliable, but God is reliable all the time.
God will direct your paths. When you cannot see, God will guide you. Sometimes, like the pause between the swipes of your windshield wipers, you are at a place in your life where you begin to wonder if God is gonna make a move, but He has never stopped moving. God is always at work in your life. We may begin to wonder if God is going to come through for us, but He always does. It may not be in our timing, but God invented time and knows how to use it far better than we do. God sees the big picture. God sees the sun on the other side of the storm. We just need to trust Him.
God is always reliable. Just because we can’t ‘see through the windshield’, doesn’t mean God isn’t clearing the way. Maybe the way God wants you to go is just different than what you think. Maybe God needs you to pull over–to be still and know that He is God. He’s got this. Trust Him. He will not fail you (like when your wipers stick or break). He never leaves you (like the windshield wiper that flew off of my van).
By the time I got to the church this morning, the storm was getting worse. Not long into our Sunday school lesson, the lights went out and all of our phones sounded with a tornado warning. The wind picked up, and the rain poured down, and it got very dark outside. We decided to move to a safer place.
Ironically, we had just started the book of Revelation and had been studying other prophecies leading up to that book which were reminding us to be ready for Christ’s return and that it would be as obvious as the lightning. And the lightning flashed.
The lights came back on and went out again and came back on once more. After Sunday school, we made our way to the sanctuary for church. We have been going through the book of John during the morning services and guess where we were? Guess what the Pastor was talking about this morning? Jesus calming the storm. God’s timing is awesome.
Pastor read from the following passages:
“By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. But He said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.”” John 6:17b-20
We hear more to the story when we turn over to Mark and pick up where Jesus responds to them after they saw him walking on the water.
“Take courage! [He said] It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Then He climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down.” -Mark 6:50b-52a
Matthew’s account gives us a few more details about what took place on the boat.
“Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey Him!” -Matthew 7:24-27
Psalms 107 foretells of these events in detail.
“Some went out on the sea in ships; they were merchants on the mighty waters. They saw the works of the Lord, His wonderful deeds in the deep. For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves. They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away. They reeled and staggered like drunkards; they were at their wits’ end. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble and He brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm and He guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind.” -Psalm 107:23-31
When the Pastor started preaching and told how Jesus spoke and the storm died down, the thunder outside boomed loudly as if to proclaim God’s power, and then the storm outside the church also died down, and the day got brighter. God is in control. He kept us all safe and gave us a safe window of time to get home before the next storm raged.
As soon as I got into my house, the sky opened up again and the rain fell hard. Again, the storm came and again it left and God was with me, reminding me that He was in control and that I was safe because I was in His hands. I felt like God was showing me how awesome He is in many ways today. To sum up what I’ve talked about, here are three takeaways:
1.) When the waters rage, we have a friend on higher ground. His door is always open.
2.) When the rain falls, we can trust in God to see us through. He is always at work in our lives.
3.) When the storms come, we can trust in God to keep us safe. The winds and the waves obey Him.
Like Psalms 107:31 says, “Let [us] give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind.”
At the end of the sermon, the Pastor left us with a final thought… Are we only going to God during the storm, or do we seek Him all the time?
Comments