Storms in our lives are
a way of life and most especially for the children of God; it may seem more than
we can humanly bear at times.
However, not all storms
in our lives are as a result of our sins, disobedience and or bad choices.
God allows some storms
in our life because in part with his divine providential care for us, this
encounter manifests our union with the almighty and a share in the carrying of
the Cross-of our Lord Jesus Christ.
When the disciples
encountered the storm in the boat, they became terrified and thought they were
about to die, and suddenly noticed Jesus Christ walking on the water.
Peter asked Jesus to
not only identify himself as not being a ghost, but to invite him to walk on
the water too.
Request granted, and
for a while Peter did walk on the water, until he too his focus off of Jesus
Christ and sensed the storm. At that point he began to sink and cry out for
help. He was again rescued and rebuked by our Lord Jesus Christ for his little
faith.
Freedom may also be a
storm in our lives too.
It is true that God
gave us the freedom to live and subdue the earth, nevertheless, this freedom
was not meant for us to commit sin, but to love God.
True freedom therefore
is when we make the choice to love God and by so doing reject the desires of
the flesh and take up that of the Holy Spirit.
Now the desire of the
flesh is not just about sex alone, as many have come to believe; in reality,
any desire that contradicts the freedom of God is essentially part of the
desires of the flesh!
When you bear false
witness against your neighbor, it is the desire of the flesh.
When you kill your
neighbor, it is the desire of the flesh.
When you covet your
neighbor’s property, it is the desire of the flesh
When you dishonor your
parents, it is the desire of the flesh
When you commit
adultery or fornication it is the desire of the flesh
When you discriminate
against others, it is the desire of the flesh
When you are greedy, a
glutton or drunkard, it is the desire of the flesh
When you refused to
give credit to whom it is due, it is the desire of the flesh
When you pretend to be
who you are not, it is the desire of the flesh.
When you refuse to
share your gifts to better others, it is the desire of the flesh
When you refuse to help
others, it is the desire of the flesh
When you hate others,
it is the desire of the flesh and so on….
Under the above
scenarios, it is absolutely challenging and humanly impossible to hold on to
the claim that you are truly free!
The freedom that God
has give to us are to love him above all things and by so doing love our
neighbors as ourselves.
True freedom allows us
to love others irrespective of their race, talent and capacity to help us in
return.
True freedom sees
beauty in all.
True freedom enables us
to be kind, compassionate and honest with those we encounter daily in our
lives.
True freedom help us to
see God in others, and by so doing we are able to see ourselves in them too.
If we are truly free,
then we shall not kill, but become an agent of life, we shall not steal, but
restore, we shall not chase after the desires of the flesh, but see what
pleases the Holy Spirit and we shall not seek protection based on guns, rather
from God who can make the impossible to become possible.
The freedom that God
has given to us also enables us to wisely walk along with the storms in our
lives, because our focus are no longer on ourselves, but on the almighty God
who is truly the sources of all that is good!
In your marriage, when
you are truly free, God will give you the courage to stay in the relationship,
no matter the storm you are experiencing because, you are walking under the
divine providential care of the Lord.
In your relationship,
true freedom become manifest when you begin to share your talents, gifts and
love with your partner, rather than hiding them for selfish purposes.
At the job place,
because of the freedom that God has given to you, you are willing to help your
co-workers and help create a better working relationship for the betterment of
the entire organization.
Today Jesus Christ is
calling on all of us to “Follow me.”
In a nutshell, the
freedom from God and based on your faith drives away fear and restore your
confidence, and therefore position you to receive grace upon grace. And that
same freedom enables you to see your circumstances as a good storm, and not a
bad one, because you are not alone.
As he promised, the
almighty God will never forsake nor abandon you, and even before you were
conceived in your mother’s womb he knows you.
May the good Lord,
bless his words in our lives. Amen
Prayer:
Dear heavenly Father,
today I come before your throne of grace and beg you to give me your freedom to
love and not to hate, to bring about life and not death, to share and not to be
greedy and above all that I may become an instrument of your peace, so that I
too will bring glory to your holy name.
And I ask this through
Jesus Christ name. Amen.
Reference: Matthew 14:
22-33, Galatians 5:1, 13-18, Look 9: 51-62
Peter Odeh 6/27/16
