“You Had Me Walking On Water”

When  I recall the story of Jesus walking on water, Peter following shortly after,  a mix of many emotions come into my mind.  Yet, mostly amazement, comfort, knowing that the same God alive then is the same God now.  There is still so much more we can learn from this amazing moment in history…so lets read on!

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“Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. ²³ After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray.Later that night, he was there alone, ²⁴ and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.” – Matthew 14: 2-24 – 

Getting into the boat to people who know the ending of the story would seem like a red flag, but to the disciples it was habit.  It is not until we go through the trial that we see what red flags could’ve been for us to not “get into the boat”.  Yet, getting into the boat is the very thing the disciples needed to do so Jesus could walk on the water.  When God sets us up for a miracle we won’t always be comfortable, but sometimes vulnerable…but nonetheless available to God. 

“Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.²⁶ When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

²⁷ But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

²⁸ “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

²⁹ “Come,” he said.” – verses 25 -29 – 

“Come”

Jesus didn’t explain to him the best way to walk on water, how to keep his feet angled, or to not put your wait all on one foot.  He just said “come”.  We have to be content with just a “come”, even when a play by plan doesn’t come with it.

“Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” – verses 29-30 – 

It wasn’t only that Peter didn’t trust God, He also didn’t trust where Jesus had placed him.  Sometimes we act similar.  We say God I trust you, but why did you place me in this job, in this family, in this school….and so on.

We will sink when we look at the storm and not at the Savior.  When we act upon what the wind and storm are trying to say, we will sink.  The storm is not acting on it’s own knowledge.  The wind isn’t blowing hard on it’s own account.  They are both under the control of God.

We can’t trust where God ha placed us without trusting Him first.  With our eyes on the Lord, even the eye of the storm knows it limits.

“Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” – verse 31 – 

“Immediately”

Not five minutes, or half an hour later.  “Immediately”

Not only is Jesus referring to our doubt in Him, but the doubt we have in where he has placed us.

Sinking doesn’t just come from doubt in Christ, but doubt in where He has put us.

“And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. ³³ Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” – verses 32-33 –

How much more are we comfortable with being in the boat, then being in the storm with our Savior?

The title of this post is from NEEDTOBREATHE’s song, “Walking on Water”.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the storm that we forget the fact that God has us walking on water! ON WATER! Did you hear me right? ON WATER!

May we never go so far as to get of the boat and then be afraid because of the storm…God has not brought you this far to abandon you!

He has you “Walking on Water.”

“There’s no turning back
Nothing in the past
My eyes on You again
Can’t see nothing at all
But Your outstretched arms
Help me believe it
Though I falter
You got me walking on water.” 

a little poem to leave you all with….

” ‘Come’ He said, ‘Come’

‘Though the waters rage

and you are afraid

come be who I want you to become

Though the step big

I AM bigger

Though the surface uneven

I will still be living and guiding

Though it be uncertain

I will close that curtain

Just come, Just come

Though you are Peter, I AM your creator.’ “

With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

 

 

 

 

The Beauty Of Rain.

I have always liked rain.  The smell, the noise, what it entails my day to be; cozy with a cup of coffee kind of day.  How about you? do you like rain?

Despite my liking for rain or the lack there of for you, there is a greater connection that we can make with rain.  We find that connection in the book of Hosea.  Before you leave this post I solely believe that whatever you don’t like about rain; the thunder, lightning, flooding,  will not effect how you will see the rain now.

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“So let us know, let us press on to know the Lord. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; And He will come to us like the rain, Like the spring rain watering the earth.” – Hosea 6:3 –

This verse has been a great comfort for me.  Many times I would read this verse and question it….what does it mean He will come to us “Like the spring rain watering the earth?”

I was at work one day and the hours seemed to drag on.  The clouds looked like they wanted to say something…rain perhaps?  And “say something” they did!  Rain came pouring steady for a good while.  Immediately my mind went to this verse!

I studied the rain.  I imagined the cars coming by holding people that were saying, “yes, I don’t have to water my garden.”  or “Man, I forgot to close my windows.” or “uh, the more rain the more flooding!” Abundance, and even dread.  Yes, behind the scenes this is how God comes to us.  Abundantly, unexpectedly, and sometimes he brings things when we feel we need it the least.

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With abundance comes a great amount of uncertainty.  Do we trust that the drain works or do we need to find buckets? Piece by piece this verse brings us a comforting view not just on rain, but of who God is.

“…press on to know the Lord.”

When circumstances come into our life that seem bad, do we press on to know God’s intentions?

When our circumstances don’t reflect goodness, that doesn’t mean that if we press on a little further we wont find the goodness that God intended in the midst of it.  It isn’t always about finding the goodness in life, it’s about pressing on to know the goodness of the Lord.

What a great way to set our hearts up to seeing just how the Lord will “come to us like the rain.”

“His going forth is as certain as the dawn…”

The certainty of God doesn’t depend on our feelings for a certain day.  God being there isn’t being compared to the way the dawn “wakes up” the knew day, no God never sleeps so He never wakes up.  It is comparing the consistency of the sun always rising, to a God who is consistent in His presence in our life.

In a world where certainty is less present…we can be thankful that God is always certain to be in every moment.

“And He will come to us like the rain….”

Like I mentioned in the beginning rain comes…

• unexpectedly
• abundantly
• and sometimes when we think we don’t need it

No matter which one of these makes you want to bite your tongue or get angry…we cannot deny the fact that these are all positives when you think about the verses we reviewed above.

We covered how when our circumstances seem bad we should seek the goodness that God intended.  We learned how God is certain in His ways, meaning He knows His ways will effect us for the good .

So even if the rain comes unexpectedly, or “too abundantly” and your afraid of flooding. Even if your the compete opposite and all of these seem good to you, we see that God knows what He is doing and His intentions are good even when our circumstances seem bad.

“He will come to us like the rain.”

The beauty of rain is found in the creator who made it.  The beauty of our circumstances are not found in the end result, but in the God who made them.  Keep on to find “that beauty”, to find God in everything.  No doubt that when God made rain…He thought of this verse…God is always thinking of us…how much do you think of Him?

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With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

 

Mustard Seed Faith.

“He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” – Matthew 17: 20 –

I never understood the “mustard seed faith”. How could something so small result into something so big? It confused me so much that it made me skip over it…read it with a half heart. Half of me believed but the other half of me just couldn’t understand. So slowly God revealed His understand to something He wants us to understand fully.

Small faith planted in big belief is what makes big results. The disciples had small faith…but if they had belief in God’s power through them ….they could’ve done what seemed impossible.

“When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.” – verse 14 and 16 –

They didn’t believe in the power Of Christ through them. Is your “I can’t” from an inventory of your own strength, or the abilities of God? Their belief in God was big, but their belief in the work of Christ through them was small.

That is where God intervenes with the parable of the mustard seed. The belief lies within your faith in God, not your faith in your belief. Meaning that belief in “anything” gets you nowhere, but only belief in who God is makes you grow. Here is what Jesus said to the disciples….

“Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” – Matthew 17: 19-20 –

Seeds. In particularly a mustard seed, are very small. A seed isn’t planted unless the planter knows how beneficial the bloom will be! A mustard seed is small, but if we believe it will be big….then Big it will be. We are small…but faith in God lets us see the “big” that He can do. We can have faith in God….but how much belief do you have in God’s strength? How big do you believe God to be?

Our mission as God’s children is to believe in God’s power through us! The disciples had not tapped into that power source. Jesus is the source to all of our power, and if we don’t act and ask in abundance to His power…than we will get a “dissapointed man and a sick boy.”

Mustard seed faith is founded in strong belief in who God is, not strong belief in an outcome. We can have strong belief in an expectation, but we wont be able to get there if we first don’t have strong belief in God. Other passages in the Bible talk about having strong belief….let’s take a look at some of them….

“ Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²² If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” – Matthew 21: 21-22-

Here we show up in Matthew 21 when Jesus just cursed a fig tree. Nothing was on this fig tree but leaves…no fruit. The disciples were amazed at how fast the tree withered. They ask Jesus, “how did the fig tree wither so quickly?” Jesus then replies with what is emboldened above. Life Study Bible puts it as this…

“Jesus, of course, was not suggesting that his followers use prayer as “magic”…instead he was making a strong point about the disciples (and our) lack of faith.”

We also see that belief word again. Here is another example….

“Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”
²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” – Mark 9: 23-24-

Here we see Jesus heal a demon-possessed boy. Our unbelief covers up a multitude of the Lord’s given joys. While this father believed, his unbelief was stronger still. What is our unbelief made up of? And what does it effect?

Our unbelief can be made up of lack of trust, the past and many other things…and it can effect the belief we put in our prayers and in our actions, and in God.

Mustard seeds are turned into “full bloom” and mountains can move when our faith and our belief rely on God….and not our own strengths. When we let belief drive our prayers, and our faith in God see what others cannot….and sometimes that “others” includes yourself.

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With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you that we are able to go to you in prayer. Forgive me where I have not gone there often. Help me to belief, not in myself, but in who you are. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.

Choose Life.

I wasn’t not going to go…I had to go.  My mind was having an attitude and my heart couldn’t keep up.  I could choose to have a good attitude and smile through it, or I could choose to pout and have major regrets later.  In other words a major battle between “choosing life” or “Choosing death.”  The examples go far and wide on how this concept applies to our lives.

God provides us with His Word to add yet another example of how we are to “Choose life”.  In Deuteronomy 30 verses 11-30 God gives Moses and the Israelites a certain command. Take into consideration  how long the Israelites have been traveling! Our life is a journey….this command God gives to the Israelite’s is the same thing He is telling us  in this season in our lives.  Verse by verse God’s message is clear…lets take a look…

“See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity;  in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it.” (verse 15) 

The ability to see beyond the “death”  is to accept the control God has of your life, and obey His commands.  God has set before you life and death, He has also set before you the instructions to live by a “life giving” mind set. 

God has set before you BOTH life and adversity, but by choosing life you are choosing to live through adversity with hope.

“But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them.” (verse 17)

The key to choosing life…obeying God’s commands.  Like we covered above, God’s commands are more “in the know” than our plans.

Choosing life  includes giving “life”  qualities to hope, belief, and courage. Along with choosing “death” comes a “death” to all things that are meant to bring “life” to our lives.  It’s a choice within a choice.

“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live  and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” (verses 19-20) 

Choosing life is a way of choosing to live “fully” the life God has made for you. Choosing life will strengthen our relationship with Christ….it can sometimes be a hard thing! Choosing life, is choosing to abide in your Savior’s most treasured plans for you.  

This verse is a  sweet message to us from a Savior who knows the situation we are in, but encourages us to choose to live through it. He has a reason for the suffering. He knows the “chiseling” that will take place to make us into His image.

“Choose life…For he is your life, and he will prolong your days as you live in the land the Lord swore to give to your father Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Deuteronomy 30: 19-20

Hold tight, and hold fast to who God is…and he will give you the strength to choose life in a situation that screams “death” to all things…hope, belief, courage…etc. ” (from God’s Little Breadcrumbs on Instagram)

A little heart to heart…

“Every summer brings about a load of curiosity….will it be different from last summer or the same?  Yet, I know that by choosing life before hand, will help me to be fully present weather what’s to come  screams death or life. Choosing life will help you to see your life the way God has chosen it to be.  When I was doomed  for eternity in hell…God stopped the “operation” and choose life for me.  God choose life for me, I will accept His choosing and walk in it…will you?”

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How will you choose life today?  Adversity is promised, but so are blessings and one constant never changing thing…..God’s love.

Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior?

“They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”   – Acts 16:31 –

With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

Dear Heavenly father,  It seems that it gets harder and harder to choose to live through what hurts me.  Help me to  live by your example and follow your commands. In Jesus’ name I pray….AMEN. 

God Meant It For Good.

I have always loved the movies where there is a dramatic hand hold, followed by a let go of the hands, longing looks in their eyes, and the words “Trust Me”.  Then it skips to five years later and the story really..truly..begins.  In my life whenever I am faced with trials, God and I don’t have a scene like this…but His words to me are still the same… “Trust Me”.

A certain person in the Bible could have made a block buster hit movie of the very scene explained above….Joseph. Joseph was his fathers favorite…he was later sold by his brothers into slavery, accused of wrong doing, put into prison and forgotten…before He could really see what God was doing.  Yet, in the end Joseph was still able to say this….

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” – Genesis 50:20 –

The intentions and the impressions are very important here.  The impression that Joseph had on God’s intentions were understood…Joseph may not have understood in one point…but you don’t have to understand in one point of your life, when God has told you that in the end all “points” will come together.  The only time that Joseph looked back was to see just how far God had brought him.  He didn’t look back to see what He could have changed, but He embraced the fact that all of the events behind him would change him for good in the now.  How many times will we let Satan get the victory when we believe that the circumstance that God has us in is meant to hurt us?

Not only is the end result of our journey made to give God glory, but the small decisions to see God’s sovereign hand in everything in everyday. 

What are some ways in which we can train our brain to remember the good that God has in store for each circumstance?

• Intentional living
• Know God’s Promising
• Obey God commands

Intentional Living

BE intentional. Live each moment with purpose.  When we live each moment to see God’s hand in everything, then we won’t have to worry that the future won’t look promising.  When you always think that the future will be better than the now, than the now will never be better.  Each moment lived with the intention of seeing God work, is a moment that won’t be regretted later.

Know God’s Promises

Do you know what God has to say about your life? Like not reading a contract and signing it is like being a Christian but not reading God’s Word.  Joseph knew who God was and what He promised those who love Him.  Check this out….

“ And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”  – Romans 8:28 –  (Emphasis added) 

When we are called to the purpose of God, then each thing we encounter in life has a purpose. Do you know this promise God has for your life? The more we know His promises for us, the more we can see the purpose in the pain.

Obey God’s Commands

By obeying what God tells us to do, step by step, you don’t have to worry about something going wrong.  The good and the bad times each have places in where the process could’ve been advanced quicker, if we deserted our sinful ways earlier and instead followed God’s commands. Yet, still God has a plan for that.

“but I gave them this command: Obey me, and I will be your God and you will be my people. Walk in obedience to all I command you, that it may go well with you.” – Jeremiah 7:23 –  (Emphasis added) 

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All of these ways can help us to confidently say that what Satan meant to harm us, is actually God saying this is not only My best….but the best thing for you.

Will you live intentionally, remember God’s promises, and obey God’s commands so that you can say that God meant all of this for good, while Satan meant it to harm you?

Satan may be able to get a victory in the place where you have fallen, but He will not get the victory when you rise up in Christ’s strength.

With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

 

Do Hard Things.

Should I or should I not…should I or should I not?

This phrase has been a re-occurring phrase as I finish out my sophomore year of high school.   The times in which I choose to do the hard things led to stronger faith, the easy things led to the complete opposite.   Doing the hard thing is what led to Noah and his family being saved from the flood(Genesis 7).  Doing the hard things resulted in Israelite’s being free from Pharaoh(Exodus 3).  Doing the hard thing resulted in radical protection for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in a fiery furnace(Daniel 3).  The list goes on….God is able to be fully in control when we do “hard things”.  Why?  Because “hard things” are the very things that take us to a place we have never been. Here, hard doesn’t meet things getting easier….hard meets  fully thriving on who God is .

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What Does doing the hard things consist of in the Christian life?

• Do the “hard thing” with great faith.
• Do the “hard thing” with trust.
• Do the “hard thing” with belief.

With Great Faith

If you do the “hard thing” without faith in God, than doing the “hard thing” again will be twice as intimidating.  A certain person in the Bible did a “hard thing” with great faith…lets take a look….

Nehemiah 2: 4-5 – “The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven,  and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.” (emphasis added) 

The hard thing?  To ask the king to to give him favor to rebuild a city.  Nehemiah was so strong on this idea because God had given him a desire to do it.  Nehemiah did the “hard thing” with great faith. He wasn’t sure why God gave him the desire, but He had faith that the desire God gave him would work out to further deliver him and God’s people. Nehemiah couldn’t see the city that would be built, but his faith saw past the ruins and into the future glory.  Do you have faith to ask God for His desire to be your own? Do you have faith in God that doing the “hard thing” isn’t depleting your from His plan, but farther delivering you into it?

With Trust

Do “hard things” with great trust in God.  The difference between faith and trust is faith is dealing with what is unseen, trust is dealing with the next step.  When you do the “hard thing” you are in a place of vulnerability….a place you have never been before.  Trust God day to day, and moment by moment… doing “hard things” will increase all of these notions (faith trust, and belief).

“A man’s heart plans his way,
But the Lord directs his steps.” – Proverbs 16:9 (emphasis added) 

With Belief

Belief is an attitude.  It’s the posture of your pleas.  Do you pray to God out of belief knowing He will answer you prayer….rather that be a yes or no?  Do”hard things” out of a place of “belief” knowing that God’s plan is still at work.   Hard things aren’t meant to bend you, they are meant to create more belief in your barren places of trust.  Mary did a hard thing in a place of belief in God’s plan, not only for her, but for all Israel.  Take a look….

“Mary said to the angel, “How will this happen since I am a virgin?”

The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you. For this reason the baby will be holy and will be called the Son of God. Now Elizabeth, your relative, is also pregnant with a son though she is very old. Everyone thought she could not have a baby, but she has been pregnant for six months. God can do anything!”

Mary said, “I am the servant of the Lord. Let this happen to me as you say!” Then the angel went away.” – Luke 1: 34-38 –  (emphasis added) 

Mary, in verse 38, responds not in “I know what to do”, but instead, “I know and believe that God knows what He is doing.”  The hard thing?  Mary believing in God’s plan for he to conceive a child as a virgin.  Yet, by believing in God’s plan out of belief and not unbelief she was able to say yes, and even be exited about it.  Exclamations are not to be read without emotion.

When you do “hard things” with great belief, you will have great excitement for what God will do through you.

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I never wanted to do “hard things”, but by doing “hard things” I have gained more faith in who God is.  Sitting back and doing what is easy will not grow us.  The more unknown we look into, the more the unknown will look less “scary.” Like a child being afraid of the dark, once the lights are turned on you see how just how UN-scary the darkness is.  When God turns on the lights to your fear of doing the “hard things” you will have more trust, faith, and belief in Him…demolishing any fear you had in doing the “hard things.”

With Christ like bubbling love,

Julia

Dear Heavenly Father, 

I ask that you help me to do “had things” out of a place of belief, trust, and faith in you. Knowing that if I do it out of any other way I will not fully be able to not fear doing the “hard things.” I love you Lord, guide me in the way you want me to go. In Jesus’ name I pray, AMEN.