God uses storms to help you.
Text:
Matthew 14:22-36 and Mark 4:35-41
We’ll study each of these 3 life storm types separately, but we approach each type of storm hoping to see more clearly why God allows them … and to some degree how we are to handle them.
What are some of God’s “purposes” for ANY storms …
1To get our attention
The Lord speaks to us quietly in our hearts, but if we don’t pay attention, He will raise the volume by sending a storm into our lives. Out of love, He reproves us to protect us from destroying ourselves or others with our disobedience.
2To bring us to repentance.
God used a literal storm to draw Jonah to repentance (Jonah 1:1-17).
Although the Lord told him to go to Nineveh to “cry against it for their wickedness,” Jonah boarded a ship “to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord” (v. 2-3). But no one can avoid God, since He is present everywhere. This storm brought Jonah to repentance and service.
3To conform us to Christ’s image.
God is willing to break us and cause suffering in order to glorify Himself by making us like His Son. God has saved us through our faith in Jesus and as we grow as Christians we are to become more and more like Him.
4To equip us for service.
Having suffered through painful storms, we come out better equipped to be helpful to others. I could talk about this purpose of God for hours.
5To demonstrate His power in our lives.
God powerfully uses the situation to make us more useful than we were before. Our faith is strengthened EVERY TIME we see the power of God at work in our lives or the lives of others we care about.
6To reveal Himself to us.
Turbulent times give us a new perspective on God and how He works. Sometimes this comes after the storm when we look back and see how He brought us through it. Then we understand better that His strength was sufficient for us and His purpose was good.
7To demonstrate His love.
Once we understand that God’s thoughts and ways are so much higher than ours, we’ll realize that any storm He brings is motivated by His love.
8To remind us who is in control.
Because God’s knowledge is both perfect and complete, God never makes mistakes. Nothing happens in our lives without His permissive will. His good purpose, mighty power, and unfailing love to always govern the storms that come our way.
The storms of life are totally effective in fulfilling God’s purposes. God desires that we should withstand and be victorious over the storms brought on by Satan — or by Ourselves.
Over the next few lessons, let’s we think about the 3 types of Storms we experience in life.
