VIDEO LINKS TO "ARE YOU ANCHORED IN THE STORM?"
BY PASTOR MARK TAYLOR
Are you anchored in the storm?
Acts 27:13-44
The surge of trouble is nothing new to God’s people. The Bible is filled with stories of those in trouble. The Hebrew children had their fiery furnace. Daniel had his den of lions. Joseph was cast into prison. Paul was shipwrecked and beaten with stripes. Peter was sent to prison. John was exiled at Patmos. James had his head cut off. David fled from Saul. Samson had his eyes put out.
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivers them out of them all.” Psalm 34:19
When You’re In A Storm, You Cannot Depend On Human Wisdom.
These were highly skilled sailors who knew what they were supposed to do whenever they faced a storm and they did exactly as they had been trained to do. And they executed it perfectly but look where they ended up...
As a follower of Jesus Christ, one of the most difficult things to do when you’re going through a storm will be to resist the temptation to handle your storms in the way that you think they should be handled.
After the sailors had done all that they knew to do, Paul stands up and gives them the “Word of the Lord” to let them know that they will all survive the storm they were in.
Whenever you’re in the middle of a storm, you need to remember that God will still be talking to you, you can depend on whatever He tells you and that He will bring you through every storm that you ever face!
Proverbs 3:5,6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.”
When You’re In A Storm, You Can Depend On Godly Wisdom
“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” James 3:17
When You’re In A Storm, You Need To Drop Some Anchors.
These sailors dropped four anchors to stabilize the ship so that they could survive this terrible storm. They had tried everything else and their last resort was to try to stabilize the ship and weather the storm..
Proverbs 10:25 Living Bible says, “Disaster strikes like a cyclone and the wicked are whirled away but the good man has a strong anchor.”
The Anchor of Prayer
Prayer is a powerful force that God will use to bring healing, restoration and forgiveness into your life!
But too often we leave this part out and wonder why relationships are broken. We wonder why the sick are still sick.
James 5:13-16 says, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
Jeremiah 33:3 God says, “Call unto Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know.”
The Anchor of Fellowship
One of the first things I see whenever Christians are going through a storm is the mistake of pulling away from their church . Satan knows that if he can get you separated from the rest of the Body that you are an easy target for him.
Hebrews 10:25 Living Bible says, “Let us not neglect our church meetings, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of His coming back again is drawing near.”
The Anchor of Faithfulness
Another tragic decision that some folks make is that they stop being faithful to what God has called them to do.
Galatians 6:9 says, “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not lose heart.”
1 Corinthians 15:58 says, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”
This widow woman was in the most difficult storm of her entire life. She only had enough flour and oil to bake one final meal for she and her son and she knew that death was imminent. 1 Kings 17:13-16
Because this widow woman was willing to trust and obey, God miraculously caused her flour and oil to never run out!
Less than 5% of American Christians tithe. If every church member were to tithe, there would be an additional $131 billion available for God’s work for missions and helping the needy.
But money is not the only place we stop being faithful during a storm. The widow didn’t just give Elijah the flour and oil, she used her ability to cook the biscuit and her time.
The Anchor of Hope
Hope is defined as “a feeling of expectation and desire for something to happen.” Some one once said “Let your hopes, not your hurts, shape your future.”
Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.”
Psa 31:24 “So be strong and take courage, all you who put your hope in the LORD!”
Psa 33:22 “Let your unfailing love surround us, LORD, for our hope is in you alone.”
Job 14:7-9 says, “There is hope for a tree, if it is cut down, that it will sprout again and that its tender shoots will not cease. Though its root may grow old in the earth, and its stump may die in the ground, at the scent of water it will bud and bring forth branches like a plant.”
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Edward Mote put it this way, in His hymn “The Solid Rock” “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus’ Name. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand.”
Paul said in I Corinthians 10:13, "There hath no temptation (trouble) taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation (trouble ) also make a way to escape."
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