“And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm” Mark 4:39

Beloved brethren,

Storms are part of life and they happen to everyone including to Jesus as shown in our anchor verse. In fact, we know from Revelation 13:7 that “there was war in heaven!” Just imagine that! Where the most-High God, the Lord of Lords has his throne, there was war there! And yet, God did not let his throne. With that knowledge, we should watch over our thoughts and judgement and, as we often easily do, avoid holding God responsible for some of the adverse situations we face. In fact, being calm and at rest despite the turmoil around us is proof of faith.

We understand from Mark 4:38 that Jesus was sleeping calmly while an obviously life-threatening storm was putting the crew in jeopardy. Fearing for their lives, the disciples woke the master up. When he arose, the Bible says that Jesus rebuked the wind.

Beloved, there are two elements that make a storm to happen: the wind and the water. However boisterous and visible the water was, it was but the slave to the wind. What most people aiming to address storms do oftentimes is to tackle the water first. Using an analogy, what they are actually doing is acting on the leaves and leaving the roots unharmed.

The joblessness you are going through is but the water; the sickness experience that has become your daily reality, the pennilessness, the protracted death your family is experiencing are all the water. The actual problem lies somewhere else and is rather spiritual. That is what you need to find out and responsibly address it. Effectiveness in addressing issues of life lies in a person’s ability to locate the source and acting on it rather than invest tons of energy on its mere manifestations. Jesus rebuked the wind and the result was immediate: the water became still.

I like the word “rebuke” which is a mark of dominion and shows that the issue is addressed from an authoritative standpoint. When dealing with spirits whose mission is to sabotage your destiny, you don’t negotiate or speak to them gently; you rather issue commands.

My brother and sister, going forward, please shift your attention from the water (physical manifestation) and focus it on the wind (hidden spiritual causes) and you will overcome the storms that are challenging your progress toward achieving your destiny. Remain blessed.