I live in NE Ohio, and we can get some pretty bad storms around here. Everything gets agitated. My dog hides under the bed, shaking. It gets dark, even in the middle of the day.
Lightning flashes. Thunder cracks. At times it shakes the house. The winds whip through the trees and the rain comes in torrents, turning my yard into Lake Lagaras.
Some storms do more damage than others, but I think it’s safe to say I’ve never sat through a peaceful storm in my life. Peaceful rain? Yes. Peaceful storm? Not so much.
“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God,and trust also in me.” (John 14:1)
Sickness. Lack. Loss of a loved one. These can release a storm in our souls. Everything is in chaos, our hearts are agitated, and peace is nowhere to be found.
For the disciples, Jesus had just told them they were losing Him, and their hearts were more than troubled.
I don’t know about you, but when storms come in my life, my heart gets agitated without my permission. It’s an automatic reaction, beyond my control.
But Jesus tells us here we can take control of that and not LET it stay that way.
We have a choice over whether or not our hearts stay troubled through a storm, and the deciding factor is trust.
Trust anchors the heart to peace.
Trust in God. Trust in Jesus. Trust in His Word. Faith that He is with us. Believing that He really will work all things together for my good, even in the hell’ish storm I’m walking through.
Faith. Believing God. Trust.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). So if our hearts are troubled, we need to check up on our faith. We need to investigate the level of Word we’re focusing on. Where’s our trust?
Trust calms the heart. It gives way to hope. And that holds us steady in the hurricane ripping through our life.
I’ve lived in the sunshine and I’ve survived the storms. The one thing that is constant through it all is Him. He is with me, and I will not be shaken.
We may not always have fair weather and following seas. Life may not always be good, but God is always good. Always.
It doesn’t matter if the storm lasts 5 minutes, 5 months, or 5 years – we can have peace all the way through.
Our hearts will not be troubled when we stay anchored to the One who can calm them. He’ll calm our hearts AND calm the storm when we stay anchored to Him in trust.