The Perfect Storm

This morning I was digging around in the Word and this thought came to me. It’s nothing amazing or profound, but I wanted to share it nevertheless. A few years ago, a book called The Perfect Storm came out and though I never read it I was always secretly humored at the crazy idea of a violent storm ever being “perfect”. Haha How can a storm which can result in sunken boats and drowned people ever be considered “perfect”? Anywhoooooo…

I was in Mark 4 and Luke 8 and read where the disciples found themselves in a violent, yet perfect, storm:

Mark 4:37-41 KJV 37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

Luke 8:22-25 KJV 22 Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth. 23 But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. 24 And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him.

It seems to me that in the spiritual realm, there *can* be such a thing as a Perfect storm. Each individual Perfect storm may be at a different place, a different time, even different people in the boat, but will always contain several common components:

1. Your boat will get filled with LOTS and LOTS of water, but not sink (surely God never places a burden on us that is more than we can bear/endure – I Corinthians 10:13). It doesn’t take rocket science to realize that every boat (life) can only take on so much water before it *will* sink. Thankfully, God knows exactly how water that is and will answer our cries “Master, master, we perish!” before the storm destroys us.

2. Jesus is always willing to be in your boat, with you, through the storm (He never leaves us or forsakes us – Hebrews 13:5). Nor is He ever going to deviously send us on some suicidal task… Ohhh by the way, you’re going to experience a bit of a nasty storm that’s going to sink your boat. But I’ll be here waiting at the shore when you get back. *If* you get back. =)

3. The danger of the Perfect storm will cause you to cry out to Jesus (it will cause you to transition from self-reliance to God-reliance – Psalms 34:4, Proverbs 3:5-6). As much as I believe that God is a gentleman, I also believe that He enjoys opportunities to show off His chivalry and gallantry. He enjoys coming to our rescue! He enjoys seeking and saving the lost! He happily looks forward to occasions when we willfully choose to draw near to Him. As much as an earthly father treasures it when his child runs to him when they’re scared, so God gladly embraces us in His arms to ease our fears and doubts.

4. Jesus will hear your cries and speak peace into your storm (certainly what we could not do, Jesus CAN do! Psalms 107:28-29, Matthew 19:26). Your storm may be big or small, short or long, during your sunrise years or in your horizon years, but regardless of the dimensions of the winds and waves, His voice still commands the same respect. His spoken, “Peace be still…” will immediately calm the raging winds and waves. The same voice that spoke the worlds into existence can instantly create peace in the midst of your chaos!

5. Your faith and trust in Jesus will be stretched and challenged (your faith and trust will grow stronger – John 11:11-15). Certainly, as we see Jesus stand in the midst of our “perfect storm” and boldly speak peace, our faith and trust in Him deepens. Perfect storms are unique in that they will always include a “God moment”… a special moment between you and God that would not have otherwise happened. God may impart unto you an expanded level of faith and boldness, special insight or understanding, a renewed boldness and passion, etc. The possibilities are limitless and infinite. When the divine connects with humanity, the impossible becomes possible! Fear and doubt is changed into peace! Disaster and crisis is converted into deliverance! Pain and misery is overcome by healing and restoration! With God all things are possible!

Any storm of life that we experience is inherently dangerous and can cause failure and destruction, but when Jesus is added to the equation the storm can become the Perfect storm. When we cry out Jesus, the winds and waves meant to batter our boat (life) are subdued by the Prince of peace (Isaiah 9:6)! Always remember this spiritual formula:

Violent Storm + Jesus in your boat + Calling out to Jesus =

The Perfect Storm

Some folks look for the silvering lining in every dark cloud, others are always saying, It looks like rain, but I want to have the expectation that every storm and trial of life has divine potential. That every storm has the potential to become The Perfect Storm!

A “God moment” that can forever change and impact my life, for the better!

Jump starting your devotional walk with God

A few years ago a good friend of mine told me that she was experiencing a prolonged “slump” in her devotional walk with God. She expressed that she was kinda bored, kinda frustrated, kinda in a “broken record” mode. A little bit of everything mixed in. After listening to her for a few minutes, I sensed she was sincerely trying to break through the slump, but she just felt stuck. Stuck in a rut. Just plain stuck.

Some people may describe a devotional slump as “going through a valley”, “going through a dry season” or it feels like God isn’t nearby and “my prayers are hitting the ceiling” and falling back to the ground. I suppose each devotional slump may be a little different for each person and may have resulted from something that person was doing (good, neutral or bad) or even God Himself. I’ve observed that sometimes God loudly speaks to us (which we usually like), sometimes Gods speaks softly (which we sometimes miss – either because we’re busy talking or not listening) or sometimes God is just silent (usually to test our obedience, faith, resolve, etc etc). I’m not going to dive into the mechanics of “why” we may go through a devotional slumps, just how to get out of one.

First off, before you dive into the possibilities of revamping your current devotional walk lineup, get with God and ask yourself a few simple questions. Do you have sin in your life? If so, repent and get that out of your life. Has God told you to do something that you haven’t done or already started doing? Maybe God is waiting for you to obey Him. Is God getting the left-overs of your week? Maybe you need to schedule some consistent devotional time into your schedule (morning, afternoon, evening, etc). Do you always finding yourself doing the “right things” because you “have to” not because you “want to”? You might need to ask God for more passion about the things of God. Get with God and ask the “gut-wrenching” questions about what you’re doing and why you’re doing it. You may find something wrong in your life *other than* your actual devotional routine. After you’ve done that and still feel that you’re in a devotional slump, then some of these suggestions might be for you.

A devotional walk with God is generally composed of three main areas: a) reading and studying the Word, b) communicating with God in Prayer and c) exalting and acknowledging God in Praise and Worship. I’ll spend the majority our time discussing the first two. Personally, I’ve found that if these first two devotional areas (Prayer and Word) are where they need to be, that my desire to Worship naturally follows as a result. Sometimes I try to shake things up though by getting a heavy dose of Psalms and/or willfully choosing to praise and worship God in a different way than my “usual” praise / worship words / actions. Sometimes I may hop around, wave a white hanky, or walk around the altar during a worship service. Sometimes, as I’m driving back and forth from work I may crank a worship CD and just “make a joyful noise”! Sometimes I sing a song to the Lord in the morning that He put on my heart. I’ve found that the more I understand / experience “who” God is, the more I want to find a way to worship and praise Him.

Your devotional walk with God is your spiritual life-line. It’s what keeps us spiritually alive, healthy and strong. You can’t cut corners on your natural-life health and you can’t with your spiritual-life either. Preserving our spiritual-health is that much more important because our souls will live on for eternity, long after our mortal bodies are gone. Eternal is for keeps. Eternity knows no length and knows no measurement. Regardless of how you try to describe it, it’s a LONG, LONG time of either a) pleasure in God’s presence or b) suffering / misery in a fiery judgment. The final destination of your eternity will be a direct result of the state of your devotional walk with God and your obedience to His Word. It’s important!

Einstein once said that, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Sometimes we can shake up our “In the Word” rut by changing the methods of how we study the Word. Compliments of some random devotional website, here’s a few study methods, along with my own personal commentary:

1. The Devotional Method - reading a passage, meditating upon it’s meaning to us and finding it’s application in our lives
2. The Chapter Summary – reading an entire chapter, understanding it’s context: Who? When? Where? Why? How?
3. The Character Quality - studying verses / passages to learn about a personal characteristic – “the guts of who we are”
4. The Thematic Method - studying verses / passages to better understand a particular theme (love, grace, hope, etc)
5. The Biographical Method - studying verses / passages to learn about a Bible character in detail – the “people” microscope
6. The Topical Method – is similar to a Thematic study, but also investigates the relationship between themes – it’s more of a “bird’s eye view”
7. The Word Study Method - studying verses / passages to learn about a particular Biblical word – its meaning, origin, context, etc
8. The Book Background Method - an entire book, learning it’s context, message (exa Jonah – Rebellion, Repentance, Restoration, Revival)
9. The Book Survey Method, 10. The Chapter Analysis Method, 11. The Book Synthesis Method, 12. The Verse by Verse Method, etc etc

I’d suspect that most people stay at the Devotional - Chapter Summary level of reading and studying. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Reading any part of the Bible for any amount of time with a desire to draw closer to God is never a bad thing. Though if you “feel” like you’re in a rut and your current reading is not drawing enough depth out of the Word, then be encouraged that there are other study methods available. Shake things up. Study about Christian characteristics. Study about a Biblical word, theme or principle. Or about a Bible character that you most relate to, or would like to become more like. Study about the armor of God or the fruit of the Spirit. Take your pick.

If you think that these study methods are too complex or over your head, wander over to your neighborhood Christian bookstore and browse the bookshelves or ask one of your church leaders for suggestions of new resources. Pick up a Strong’s Concordance or download E-Sword. Maybe test-drive a different Bible translation or transliteration (I enjoy the Amplified or The Message) - though be warned that some translations can deviate from the purest, original meaning of verses. Regardless of what resources you end up reading / using in your efforts to stir up your “In the Word” devotional walk, don’t get caught up in always reading books about the Book. Make sure any “changes” you make point you back to the Word.

Also, when you are in the Word, keep a devotional journal or note-card bookmark handy to quickly scribble down things that God may show you. If your Bible has wide margins and you’re comfortable doing so, scribble notes down there. Don’t let a faulty memory let a potentially life-changing insight slip through your fingers. Just because the Word is forever settled in heaven, doesn’t mean your memory is. hehe

Well, on to communicating with God in prayer. People have written a TON of books on the topic, much has been said. How can a person shake up their “Prayer walk”? That’s certainly a loaded question. Here’s a few possibilities to help. Want to increase the quality of your prayers? Try praying the Word more frequently; by praying the Word you are assured that you are weaving God’s promises and blessings into your life and spirit. You are also praying wisdom and understanding into your daily life decisions and actions. Find yourself running out of things to say and praying the same phrases or requests over and over again? Before you go to pray – write down 5-10 things on a note-card you’d like to pray about. Then just start verbalizing your concern, request, or thanksgiving to God. Spend a few minutes on each point and before you blink an eye you will have covered a LOT of quality ground without wandering aimlessly through your prayer time. Remember your prayer list isn’t law; if you feel to linger on a particular point just keep praying about it. If you don’t cover all the points, don’t lose sleep. You’ll be able to come back to them some other prayer time.

Sick of struggling with the same hindrances and battles? Study up on spiritual warfare and learn to battle in the Spirit with your prayers. Identify your allies and enemies. Investigate the battles to be won and how the Bible says they can be won. Get passionate about praying. Pray your guts out. Intercede, as the Spirit compels you. Get serious about shaking the heavens with your prayers. Bind in heaven and bind on earth, loose in heaven and loose on earth. If your battles aren’t being won on your feet, it’s possible that you haven’t fought enough on your knees.

Do you feel like your faith is weak? Read about the promises and blessings of God and ask God for a deeper level of faith. Faith is a key component in a successful prayer-walk. God responds to faith, so if it’s lacking in our lives we need to take the necessary steps to build / rebuild it. Do you feel like you’re not as passionate about your relationship with God as much as before? Thank Jesus for the cross and the price He paid. Pray about how He redeemed you with His blood and pulled you out of the miry clay. Pray back into *your* remembrance all the things that God has done in your life. Do that long enough and your love / passion for God will be rekindled like never before.

Don’t hear much from God in prayer? Make time to be quiet and give Him a chance to talk! He’s not going to talk over you if you’re always busy talking. Communication is a combination of two factors: speaking *and* listening. If you sense a lull in your own prayer, stop talking for a little bit. He may be wanting to show something to you. Prayer is two-way communication! That means you get a chance to talk and He gets a chance to talk. He listens to you, so take time to listen to Him. If you like talking 100% of the time, write a book or start a talk-show.

Don’t get stuck in the “Thank God – Ask for Stuff – Thank God – Ask for Stuff” cycle. Shake things up. Venture out into the deeper waters of prayer. Become more focused and passionate about communicating with God. Identify the weaknesses of your “Prayer walk” and shore them up with appropriate changes. Remember any break-downs in a prayer-walk isn’t because of God, it’s because of us. Apply some of these principles and you should sense yourself eventually breaking through that “Prayer walk” slump.

Remember these are just a handful of simple suggestions to help you break out of a devotional walk slump. There are many, many more suggestions and ideas out there.

Just some food for thought….