STORMS

You’ll be happy to know that we made it through the night of severe thunderstorm warnings, tornado warnings with a not too far away touch down and lots of rain and very strong winds!  From what I could see on Fiver’s and my morning walk, our neighborhood seemed to fare very well after the long night’s activities.  I did see one tree down near the cart path on the golf course, but other than that, everything looked normal except for a few more leaves in the street than usual. 

It was a long night though, and the dog and I did spend a little time in our safe room when the weather forecasters suggested it, but the turbulent air that was coming our way dissipated well before it got near us!  The closest touchdown was in the town of Coweta about 20 minutes southeast of us, resulting in roof and window damage to some schools, a gas station and some private residences.  There were also reports of another tornado about 75 miles southeast of us in and around the Tenkiller Lake area.

So, once again, I am thankful for the Lord’s protection and covering over us.  It was interesting to me as I noticed how easy it could become to let go of one’s trust in the Lord and yield your emotions over the TV and radio reports… and especially when the tornado horns go off in your neighborhood!  For me, it was all about my reminding myself (throughout the night…) of whose report was I going to place and keep my trust and subsequent composure in.

In Psalm 91:2 the Psalmist wrote, “I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.” (KJV)  As I read this earlier this morning, I was quickly drawn to or smitten* by how the writer states his first action as “I will SAY of the Lord…”  He didn’t write that “I will think of the Lord” or “I will try to remember what He said” but that “I will SAY…”

In the New Testament we also see that the concept of the importance of your words was something that was very important to Jesus as well.  In Mark 11:22-23 we find Jesus teaching on the basics of faith and declaring, “Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever SAYS to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that the things which he SAYS are coming to pass, what ever he SAYS shall be his.” (EMTV)

And we see Jesus giving a vivid and practical example of this teaching in Mark 5:21-43 when He is heading to the house of Jairus, the leader of the local synagogue in order to heal the man’s dying child.  On the way Jesus and His disciples are stopped by a woman who was so determined to get healed by Jesus that she crawled through the crowd that surrounded Him, touched Him and was instantly healed.  Well, Jesus felt the power leave Him and called out to the women and spoke with her… all while Jairus was nervously waiting for and wanting Jesus to get a move on to his house!

Then, as the story progresses, we see some servants of Jairus coming up through the crowd and while Jesus is still speaking to the women, they begin to tell Jairus the dreaded news that his daughter has already passed.  This is when and where Jesus proves His point on the importance of our spoken words.  Mark 5:36 tells us that, “When Jesus overheard what they said, he told the synagogue leader, "Don't be afraid! Just believe." (God’s Word ©)

This portion of scripture always excites me!  Jesus had just finished telling the women that He had healed, that "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace! Be cured from your illness," (Mark 5:34 God’s Word ©) and He wanted the same thing to happen for Jairus and his daughter… but he also knew that Jairus’ words could continue to make it happen or put an immediate STOP to His ability to heal the girl. 

So, before Jairus could compute what his servants were telling him, and before he could say something negative and full of doubt and unbelief… JESUS CUT HIM OFF and told the leader of the synagogue to NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT BEING AFRAID… but to KEEP ON BELIEVING in Jesus and the power in His Words!

In many respects, it was exactly like all the negative reports that I kept hearing last night on the TV, the radio and with the numerous emergency text alerts that I kept receiving on my phone.  Whose report was I going to believe?  Well… I made the decision early on! 

YES, I took precautions for the safety of my dog and I, but I also kept reminding myself to not be afraid by allowing the natural reports to steal my trust, confidence and expectations in the ultimate faithfulness of my God in His protection for me!  I chose to NOT speak words of doubt, unbelief and fear but instead to SPEAK ONLY what the Word of God said about His care for me.

HOW ABOUT YOU?

What are you SAYING when the storms of life come your way?  I always like to SAY what God’s Word says about it!  And you know… It keeps working for me and will for you as well!

Have a great week ahead… and keep EXPECTING God’s best for your life!

 

*Smitten: See our last blog entitled, “To be Smitten” posted October 9, 2021 http://pjberruto.blogspot.com/2021/10/to-be-smitten.html