Jesus fed 10,000 to 15,000 people from five loaves of bread and only two fish in Mark 6:30-45. Now jump to Mark 6:45-46: “immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray.” They all needed rest. Jesus found rest by leaving the group to pray. Jesus always found strength from prayer. One of the greatest encouragements to us is to know that Jesus found it essential to pray in order to feel re-energized in the strength of the Lord.
Next a storm came up in Mark 6:49-50. The disciples were in the boat and were not making any headway because they were rowing against the wind and getting nowhere. Jesus saw this and walks on the water. Jesus had never left. He was always there. Try and remember this was now around 3AM-6AM. They had to be exhausted from lack of sleep besides physical exhaustion from rowing against that wind. Here is the punchline in Mark 6:51: “And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly ASTOUNDED.” The disciples didn’t consider the miracle of feeding the huge amount of people just minutes before. They saw it but didn’t get it. They were shocked that the wind suddenly stopped and the water was calm.
I am praying that the Lord will astound me in my answers to prayers! I am just like these disciples. I am just like these men. How quickly I forget one answer to prayer and then move onto the next hard circumstance in life and too often forget the blessings God has previously given me and doubt floods in. May I, may you, be ASTOUNDED in Jesus calming your storm(s) in life this week!
Love this! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for your encouragement and reading my very first posting on my Blog!
Thank you Laureen! I am still learning how to maneuver all of this. I am still a work in progress but before the whole world now!
Going through Mark right now.
Amen to ” How quickly I forget….”
Pray God will fulfill your hearts desire!
Thank you Pam!
I need a personal tutor with this. Thank you for reading and commenting Pam!
Good for you Linda ~ for ‘stepping out of the boat’ in trust and starting your blog!
Litterly stepping out of the boat, yes! Thank you for your encouragement!
Love this Linda! Keep up the writing!
Thank you JoAnn! You bless my heart! Now if I can just get pictures, and all of the other stuff. This is so hard for somebody my age!
Thank you Linda for your blessing and encouragement through this blog! I have been reminded of how God is in the small details of my life.
He cares so much and delights in answering my (our) prayers, big and small. Also, that He is the God of miracles and ALL things are possible through Him!! (Matthew 19:26)
Thank you Lisa! He does delight in answering our prayers! Mine for the past week, and especially over the weekend was being able to get my Blog up. I had a verse on my desk that said “. . . we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen . . .” I literally prayed for the computer blog part I could not see but knew was there. I am still praying for that and for someone to help me get it where I want it to look like. So appreciate your friendship!
Linda, you are trusting Him to hep you with this, one step at a time and that is wonderful to see!
It’s amazing to me that just this week I have watched God, not only calm the big storms in people’s lives I’ve been praying for, but also answer prayers in such a BIG way, that I am absolutely… ASTOUNDED!!! Thank you friend!
Lisa, that is so exciting to hear! Thank you for sharing with me! Our Thanksgiving Holiday really needs to be celebrated more than just in November!
Linda it is such a blessing to see how God has allowed you to experience trials that were so heavy for you that you absolutely needed Him to help you navigate your way through them and in the process of all this you learned practical life lessons that you’ve been so gracious to share with other sisters in Christ.
Angela, you’ve been there. Done that too precious sister!
Outstanding work. Truly blessed by God in your ministry.
Thank you Steve for your constant encouragement and your love for God’s Word!