There Will Be Storms

Scripture Reading: Mark 4:35-41

Focus Verse: Mark 4:38  “Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion.  The disciples woke him up, shouting, Teacher, don’t you care that we are going to drown?”

Storms are a part of life.  But I must admit to you that I’m seeing things in the world that are quite shocking.  Today I’m watching the news that Russia is attacking Ukraine by military force.  There have been over 130 Ukrainians killed so far today.  We are watching as food and petrol prices are going up very fast.  We are just starting to come out of the worst pandemic that world has known for over 100 years.  

We all go through storms in our lives.  Some storms are worse than others.  I heard a pastor say “we are either in a storm, or coming out of a storm, or heading for the next storm.”  The disciples were in a very bad storm because they felt as though they were going to drown.  But Jesus was at the back of the boat asleep.  Even though Jesus was asleep, He still knew exactly what was going on because He was God.  I also find it interesting that the storm didn’t wake Jesus, but the cry from the disciples did.  They cried, “Don’t you care that we are going to drown?  My pastor friend Greg Laurie puts it this way.  “In this sense, Jesus really was asleep, but in a broader sense, God never sleeps.  Remember, Jesus was fully God and fully man.  So he was exhausted and drained from the activities of the day.”  When Jesus awoke He rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “peace be still."  And suddenly the wind stopped and there was a great calm.

When you pray does it ever seem as though God is asleep?  It seems that way for me sometimes.  I think to myself God are you listening to me?  Maybe you’re in the middle of a storm right now.  Maybe you have a sick child, or maybe you have difficulties in your marriage,  or maybe things are not going well at your job.  We all go through hardships, difficulties, and tragedies at times.  And we cry out to the Lord just as those disciples did.  

God knows what is happening in Ukraine tonight.  Sometimes when we call on the Lord He stops the storm, and other times He wants to walk with us through the storm.  But you can take comfort in knowing that storms don’t last forever.  Just remember, God said “I will never leave you or forsake you.”  Deuteronomy 31:6  and "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13

Bobby Johnson

Interlocking Ministries

A Great Blessing

Scripture Reading: Matthew 28:16-20

Focus Verse:

"Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.  " Colossians 4: 2-6

The last few verses in the book of Matthew are called “The Great Commission”.  This is a command that Jesus gave His followers before returning to heaven.  Jesus’ command is that we tell the Gospel (good news) to others and disciple them.  That means after we share the good news with them and they accept Christ, we disciple them by teaching them how to live the Christian life.  This is not complicated.  As we go about our daily lives we share what Christ has done in our lives with others as the opportunity arises.  Not everybody we talk to will accept our message, but that’s okay we are just being obedient to do what Jesus asked us to do.

My daughter Tamara told me today that she has had opportunities to speak with a person named Tom about Jesus at a coffee shop several times over the past few weeks.  He told her that he doesn’t know where to begin reading the Bible.  Tamara suggested that he start with the book of John since this tells a lot about the life of Jesus.  We can pray for Tom that God would open his eyes to the Salvation that God wants to bring into his life.  You can be obedient to what Jesus has asked us to do by starting a conversation with someone you meet as you are going about your business, whether it's at a coffee shop, the lake, the market or at school.   Luke 15:7 says,  “In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away.”  When someone accepts Christ you will experience a great blessing in your life and there will be joy in heaven for this one lost sinner that repents and turns to God.  Let's pray for Tom to make a decision to accept Christ.

Bobby Johnson

Interlocking Ministries

God is Love

Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 13 and to go deeper 1 John 4:7-21

Focus Verse: "We love because he first loved us." 1 John 4:19 and "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:35

We love.  Why are Christians to be known by our love? (John 13:35)  The root of the answer is because God is love. (1John 4:8)  Notice that I said that God IS love and that is better than God loves because love is not just something that God does, but it is the essence of who He is. 

Because God is unfailing love, He would not leave us in our sin, but sent his only son Jesus, to take the sin punishment in our place. (John 3:16)  No greater love is there than this. The failure in humanity (sin) was a reason to love all the more, because it is needed and not because it is deserved.

Because we have been redeemed and have experienced the greatest love known to mankind, we can, in turn love others as God has commanded us to do.  Love, even if love isn't returned. (2 Cor. 12:15)

Because our flesh often gets in the way due to our selfishness, pride, self-righteousness, and unforgiveness, loving others can be a challenge and we often do a poor job of representing our role as a Christian.  Paul so loved the Corinthians that though they didn't love him in return, he continued to love them. (2 Corinthians 12:15)

Because we are not left alone in our struggle to love one another, we can allow the Holy Spirit to show us our sin and convict us of the lack of love in our lives.  We can approach God in confession and ask Him to work in our hearts to love others as the Holy Spirit equips us to do so.

Love should be who we are.  Loving others is not our achievement to be proud of, but the work of God in our lives that we can praise Him for.  Love should be flowing through so that others may understand our Heavenly Father and praise Him.  We love imperfectly, but God loves perfectly.

A few years ago I went to a funeral of a lady named Pearl.  She was not considered accomplished by the world's standards, but her legacy was that of love.  She cared for the very small children in the church as their parents could go to worship without being disturbed.  She loved each child completely and they each thought they were favored.  I know this well, because she also cared for my children and they knew that she loved them well.  She loved the parents and the pastors.  She loved in a way that was not just flat, but deeply, even telling truth in love sometimes. A failure in another person was her reason to love all the more because it was needed, not because it's deserved.  She loved.  God is love, therefore we love.

Page Johnson
Interlocking Ministries

The Gibeonites Decieve Israel

Bible Reading: Joshua 9:1-15

Focus verse: "So the Israelites examined their food, but they did not consult the Lord." Joshua 9:14

The Israelites were instructed by God to not make treaties with any people group who lived near the promised land.  The people of Gibeon heard about the destruction and defeat in Jericho and in the city of Ai and decided to deceive Joshua and the Israelites in order to save themselves.  They dressed in clothes that made it look like they had traveled from very far and they brought dry and moldy bread.  They lied to Joshua and the Israelites and asked for a treaty.  Joshua asked questions and made his decision.  He made the peace treaty and the leaders of the community ratified their agreement with an oath.

Joshua and the Israelites were tricked by the visitors and made a major mistake.  They knew that God was with them in Jericho and Ai and had given them great victory.  They thought this was an easy decision and the evidence looked real.  Joshua made a decision based on his own observations.  He didn't consult the Lord.  The Lord would have given wisdom if they had only asked.  Instead, they made a big mistake and it resulted in a disobedience and trials.

The Bible tells us to seek God's counsel in all things.  Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT) says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take."  Every decision matters to God.  Maybe we can be so prideful that our Lord has given so much victory that we begin to be lazy in consulting Him.  Maybe we think the decision is so small or easy that we don't need extra wisdom from God. This would be a mistake and a good way for Satan to deceive us, get us distracted and out of God's will.  Let's remember to talk to God about all things and consult him in all our ways.

Page Johnson

Interlocking Ministries

Extra reading: Matthew 7:24, Matthew 10:16, Ephesians 5:15-17, 1 John 4:1, 5-6