Life's Storms

In the world, ye shall have tribulation (John 16:33b).

We know we are going to have problems, trouble, and worries in this life; and they come for all sorts of reasons. However, I'm going to discuss them in three broad categories. Some storms come because we disobey God, but some storms come because we obey God. However, others come due to the bad choices of people around us. Let's examine each of these more carefully.

But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.... But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a great tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken (Jonah 1:3-4a).

Jonah is a good example of someone who met with storms because he disobeyed God (also see blog of 5-27-16). His storms came on different levels - physical, emotional, and spiritual. I don't understand how a prophet of God could think he'd manage to run and perhaps hide from God. But don't we all sometimes get caught up in what we want in the defiance of God's will? Storms usually follow, and this should be a lesson for us.

And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew (John 6:18).

In John 6, Jesus had fed a multitude with just five barley loaves and two fish, and the people were talking about making Him a political king. He wanted to go up on the mountain alone and pray, so the disciples crossed the Sea of Galilee ahead of Him. That's when the storm came up. Sometimes when we're doing what we're supposed to and following God's will, Satan will try to discourage us with difficulties. But the Bible promises, if we stay strong in the Lord, Satan will flee. Jesus calms our storms.

For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another (Galatians 6:13).

I've found that many of life's tragedies and upheavals come from people choosing evil. Not wanting robotic people who had no choice but to follow Him and do His will, God gave us free will. That coupled with mankind's sinful nature and a fallen world brings many difficulties. This is often the answer to why bad things happen to God's people. However, He promises to always be there for us. We might have to go through vicious storms, but our Lord will be with us and eventually guide us out. And we can be sure some good will have come from it when we look back. Surviving storms can make us stronger, better people.

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