Why Wait?

 

You can have divine directions and peace in the midst of the storm.

Scripture Reading:     Matthew 14:22-33

“²² And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.²³ And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.²⁴ But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.²⁵ And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. ²⁶ And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. ²⁷ But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. ²⁸ And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. ²⁹ And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. ³¹ And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? ³² And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased. ³³ Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God

A Miracle took Place:

Here we see where Jesus had feed the five (5) thousand men beside women and children off five (5) loaves bread and two (2) fish, and then they took up twelve (12) full baskets of left overs.  That is a miracle!

 Notice:

In verses (22-24) tell us that after Jesus had feed the five thousand; after the miracle took place, then the storm came into the lives of His disciples.

In verse (22) it says, “He sent them away, because it was time for Him to pray to the Father “before” the storm came-Jesus knew the storm was coming! 

(Why Wait?) Yes, why wait to pray.  Jesus didn’t.

Verse (24) says, “²⁴ But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.”  The wind (storm) was contrary. 

What do contrary means?  It mean opposite in nature, directions, or meaning.  Wow!  Also there is another meaning, perverse; self-willed, unfavorable, and opposite in position or direction, as said earlier. 

Pray while you have the strength, and chance before the wind of trouble come your way,  before the storm blow into your life; make preparation before it comes (Why wait?)

Jesus is our example:

Scripture Reading:            Psalm 32:6

Be careful of the east wind, Jesus knew a storm was coming, and when it came He was not worrying, but in faith because He had prayed to the Father for strength, directions, power over nature, comfort, and just to be in God’s presence. Because in His presence is fullness of joy, amen. 

Verse (23) “And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.”  After reading that I knew Jesus was teaching us to fix our eyes on Him, which is God’s Word.

Now let’s look at Peter who was fishing and not praying.  At first Peter was in faith when he walked on that water, but when he took his eyes off Jesus he begin to sink, (this is when all kinds of trouble come into your life) he took his eyes off Jesus.   Jesus knew the storm would rage, and he wind would blow.  And, He also knew they were under His control.  We must know this too!  (Why wait?)

Pray while you have the chance.  Fix your eyes on Jesus.  The storm of life will rage, the wind will blow, but hey will not come near you, and they can be under your control with the help of the Lord.  Fix your eyes on Jesus.

Know that yesterday’s miracle will bring tomorrow’s storm and wind, so make preparation today.  (Why wait?) 

Question:

How do we make preparation before the storm and wind?

1.   A Secret Place:

a.      Go before God for divine directions.  Looking up to heaven in a secret place, find a desert place ( Luke 9:10)

b.      Leave the old associations (Genesis 12:1; Luke 5:16, 6:12).

c.       Go aside privately in your heart, because God hears the heart prayer. (Proverbs 16:1)

2.   Spiritual Preparation:

Ephesians 6:15 “And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;”

Our faith has to rest in God, not in our preparations. And above all, we need to love God just as much during and after a crisis as we did before it. These are all reasons why spiritual preparation is so important.

We first need to understand that God is in control of our personal and national destinies. Joseph in the Book of Genesis understood this. He realized that his personal trials—being sold into slavery, wrongfully accused of adultery and sent to prison—were all part of God’s greater plan to place him in a high position in Egypt, where he was able to prepare a nation for famine and save many lives. (Genesis 37, 39, 41; 45:7-8; 50:20)  Preparation precedes blessings.  We must seek God.

Steps required in a spiritual preparation:

Isaiah 7:2 “And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind.”

2 Chronicles 19:3 “Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.”

Yes, we must prepare for the blessings in the midst of the storm by

1.   Retirement in God’s presence.

a.    Sit down in God’s presence, depart from everything, be alone with God, rest in His presence (Matthew 15:29) (Mark 6:31-32).

b.    We must give up the ghost (John 19:30).

c.    We must bow our spirit, soul, and body.  Turn completely control over to the Lord.

d.    Return unto the Lord (Luke 1:17).

e.    Turn your face to the wall, and seek God

Isaiah 38:1-2: “In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came unto him, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order: for thou shalt die, and not live. Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, (Why wait?)

This message was given to me from the Holy Spirit before I faced this particular situation, and I was told to pray now.  After praying I felt strong in the Lord, I felt secured in the Lord, I knew I was about to face a storm, but didn’t know when and where or what it was.  I cried out to God and God heard my cry and answered me with peace in my heart through the whole situation.  God is our peace in the midst of any storm.   When Jesus was sleeping down in the bottom of the ship He was not worried when the storm came (Luke 8:23-26)

“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.²⁶ And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee.”

Also read (Mark 4:37) “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?  Don’t wait to pray.



Prayerfully yours,
Evangelist Claudia Jordan