Soaring in a Storm

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
Monday, February 9th, 2015
Mary Welchel

There are several things we can learn from eagles about soaring in a storm.

Eagles and Storms
Eagles deal differently with an approaching storm than other birds. Instead of flying away, an eagle will stay perched on his nest until he feels the first rain drops. Then he launches flight from his lofty home, using the strong winds that accompany the storm to take him higher and higher until he sees the sunlight beams around him and the storm clouds beneath. The eagle has no ability to stop the storm, but he has the ability to fly above the storm.

The Storms of Our Lives

Jesus told us up front to expect storms, and he also told us how to react to them:
John 16:33: “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
“You will have trouble.” It’s guaranteed. The Christian life is not an escape hatch from trouble. “But take heart!” Jesus reminds us. “Take heart, be encouraged, because I have overcome the world.” We may honestly ask, what good does it do me in my troubled world to know that Jesus has overcome the world?
Here’s how: We who are born again by his power are “in Jesus.” Colossians 3:3 tells us “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Since we are in him, we are able to take heart and be encouraged, even in the midst of trouble, because we don’t have to weather the storm; Jesus does it for us. We are in him, and he has overcome the world and its trouble.

Being “in Jesus” gets us through our storms. He is our protection and all we have to do—all we can do—is to relax “in him” and enjoy the safety that he provides. He won this safety for us when he overcame death and sin and the grave. He rose again to demonstrate his victory over trouble. He rules over the storms of our lives. He is a shelter in the time of storm.

Remember, you are equipped to soar above the storms and turn that adversity into an advantage.
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
This thread is dedicated to anyone who may have a friend, associate or family member going through some real-life refinement. It couldn't be more timely for a family member of mine. Sometimes I just believe God whispers to Mary's heart. Share this with them! :yep:
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
Tuesday, February 10th, 2015


When life’s storms are raging around you, it’s a good time to learn a lot about yourself. Someone has said that when your cup spills over, it reveals what is really inside of you. The storms of life cause us to spill over. I have to tell you from my own life that I have not weathered every storm victoriously from day one.

Often my first reaction is to question and complain. I ask “Why?” “God, this isn’t fair!”

You know, God does not get upset with our “whys”. He understands them. In the midst of the storm, we can almost never understand why. And we beg God to give an account of his actions. We should not complain to other people, but God invites us to let him know exactly how we feel. He knows it anyway, so we might as well verbalize it to him.

A second typical reaction to storms in our lives is to ask God to stop, to find another way. Jesus did that three times in the Garden of Gethsemane. He said, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me” (Matthew 26:39).

In the midst of the storm, it’s hard to believe that it can work out for our good. Romans 8:28 seems like a cliché and the last thing we want is for someone to quote: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him. . .” :)

A third response to storms is the feeling that God has forsaken us. Job voiced those feelings, found in Job 23:1-9. “If only I knew where to find him,” Job said; “if only I could go to his dwelling.”

It is natural to think that God could not be in this storm, this awful thing. Like Job, we cry out: “God is not here. I cannot find God. I go where I used to go to find him—church, daily devotions, Bible studies—but I don’t get those good feelings anymore!” Job said if he could find God, “There an upright man could present his case before him, and I would be delivered forever…” (Job 23:7).

In the midst of a storm, we often just cannot see or feel God. And it frightens us. Maybe you’re in that spot today. You’ll find encouragement in Job 23. I encourage you to read it today.

And ask God to make you faithful even in the midst of a storm that you cannot understand.
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
Wednesday, February 11th, 2015


Eagles use storms to elevate them to a higher altitude. The very winds that would seem to destroy them become their power supply to take them above the storm, where they break through to the sunshine above the clouds.

Why Testing?

Sometimes storms are testing places in our lives. But have you ever wondered why God tests us? Doesn’t he know everything about us anyway? Our schoolteachers tested us in part to find out how much we had learned. But God already knows all there is to know about us. So why does he test us?

Hebrews 12:10 gives us the answer: “Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.” He tests us for our good, our benefit.

Job said, “I will come forth as gold” (Job 23:10). In the midst of a terrible test, Job was able to look beyond it and see the end result. Can you do that? I know it’s hard, but God wants to encourage you with the assurance that you’re going to know righteousness and peace in your life if you will allow this test to train you.

The sad thing is, many of us don’t pass our tests. We rebel or run away or try to manipulate the situation, instead of accepting it from God’s hand and asking him to use it for his good purposes. If you’re going to go through the pain, you might as well know the gain.

Then, like the eagle, we take those winds of adversity and turn them into winds of opportunity.

Above the Storm or Not?

Storms are never easy or fun. But what is our alternative? To let the storm wipe us out? To live in bitterness and anger over the storm and its effects? To spend the rest of our days mourning and weeping over what could have been or what no longer is? Is that easy?

Easy is a word we should not even consider when we talk about storms. But your choice is to soar above the storm and get out of it, or to be trapped in its whirlwinds and battered by its torrents. Let God show you how to fly above your storm.

______________________________
Factoids:
  • Eagles have unusual eyes.
    They are very large in proportion to their heads and have extremely large pupils. Eagles’ eyes have a million light-sensitive cells per square mm of retina, five times more that a human’s 200,000. While humans see just three basic colours, eagles see five. These adaptations gives eagles extremely keen eyesight and enable them to spot even well-camouflaged potential prey from a very long distance. In fact the eagles’ vision is among the sharpest of any animal and studies suggest that some eagles can spot an animal the size of a rabbit up to two miles away!
  • Eagles are admired the world over as living symbols of power, freedom, and transcendence
 

Lovely_Lady82

Well-Known Member
Thank you for this timely message! I thank God in every circumstance especially now, as he gives me strength to soar above my storm.
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
^^^ Amein! and, you're welcome, Lady! Stay blessed ~ God is Mighty... a strong Tower. :yep:
 

Laela

Sidestepping the "lynch mob"
Friday, February 13th, 2015

To soar in a storm, like an eagle, we need to use the very winds of the storms in our lives to carry us to God’s sunshine, above the clouds.

Looking at Mary and Martha, we saw that Jesus had an answer for their unanswered questions—on his timetable and in his way. But what about those of you who don’t get those answers? Your Lazarus never comes out of the tomb. You’re left to face those unanswered questions for the rest of your life.

I believe for Christians who have truly placed their faith in Jesus, who know his power, who believe with all their hearts that he can rescue them from any circumstance, it is extremely difficult to face the fact that God is not going to answer your questions, and you’ll never know why certain things happen. After all, we’re supposed to have answers, aren’t we?

Well, I’m certainly not going to tell you that I have answers to your unanswered questions. I don’t, and there are times when I throw up my hands and say, “I don’t understand it.”

I want to say that if you have unanswered questions, God is not going to condemn you for asking the questions, for feeling anger at the unjust circumstances. He even understands that you’re likely to go through a period of being angry at him. God is big enough to handle our anger.

Re-focus Your Mind

When the questions have no answers, we have to abandon them and be willing to live with the unanswered questions.
But we don’t have to live in despair or anger; the same God who for whatever reason does not answer our questions is the God who will bring us comfort and strength to face them.

Trust His Heart

There’s a song that I like a great deal. It says, “When you can’t trace his hand, trust his heart.” When you can’t see why he’s doing what he’s doing, you can still trust his goodness and his love for you. When you can’t trace his hand, trust his heart.

Someday our faith will turn to sight, either here or on heaven’s shore. Meanwhile trust a trustworthy God and soar above the clouds, even in the midst of a storm.

~END
_______________________________________
Thankfully, God is too good, to be unkind.


SONG: Trust His Heart
 
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