The Boat Of Adversity

Sometimes You have to Go through the

Boat of Adversity to Get to the Calm in the Storm

(Jonah 2) “From inside the fish Jonah prayed to the Lord his God. He said: “In my distress, I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. You hurled me into the depths, into the very heart of the seas, and the currents swirled about me; all your waves and breakers swept over me. I said, ‘I have been banished from your sight, yet I will look again toward your holy temple.’ The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, Lord my God, brought my life up from the pit. “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, Lord and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple. “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’” And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.”

Whether it was fear or Jonah’s own stubbornness in not wanting to answer the call of God, his disobedience opened up the door to correction. You reap what you sow,

(Galatians 6:7-10) “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”

Whether you are experiencing a storm from your own disobedience or from the hand of someone else’s disobedience and you are caught in the middle, you can count on God’s will to be done. Sometimes the storms are to bring out a passion for the purpose God has for you; and if so, He will bring it to light.

(Isaiah 46:10) “I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.”

Jonah disobeyed the Lord and he got on a ship and ran in the opposite direction, he and his shipmates were caught up in a storm so bad that he had to be thrown overboard. Everyone just knew that this storm was so bad that it was due to an act of disobedience on someone’s part. Jonah owned up to it; he knew it was because of him. As soon as they threw him overboard, the storm calmed but not for Jonah; he had not repented. It took getting swallowed by a whale for him to finally repent.

Are you experiencing a storm of great magnitude? Then examine your ways.

(II Corinthians 13:5) “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless, of course, you fail the test?”

Go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to show you the cause of the storm and if it is from something you did and be humble enough to repent. Or do you want the storm to continue? It is up to you.

(James 4:6) “But He gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: "God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble."

If it is due to someone else’s sin and disobedience that is connected to you then ask Him to show you who and what to do; ask for wisdom.

(James 1:5) “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

God wants to bless us and to have a close and personal relationship with all of us which is the reason why He provided the atonement for our sins instead of leaving it to us.

(III John 1:2) “Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.”

Don’t continue in the storm of adversity for any longer than you have to; go to God in prayer. Are you experiencing great financial difficulty, relationship issues or the lack of one, family trouble, and feeling stuck spiritually and not able to grow? Maybe you feel as if there is a wall up that you cannot move past and you do not know what it is. Sometimes it is in the storms that we find our peace.

The storms bring the issues to the surface as with Jonah; they bring our weaknesses to the surface. The storms of life that God allows to come into our life are sometimes the only things that get our attention.

God wants to bless us and he will use whatever means he can to get us to face the problem instead of running or backing down or ignoring it so that he may in turn bless us. Go to God in prayer with a willing heart to receive and repent if needed and the winds of change will come your way and the calm from the storm along with abundant blessings.

Blessings in your spirit, your job, your family, and your finances! Ask and you will receive your answer!

(John 10:10) “The thief comes not, but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I have come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly.”