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* Reprinted from a July 27, 2011 post
“All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised him to life” (Phil. 3:10, CEV)
You and I have faced some kind of crisis in our lives, directly or through other people's experiences.
Exercise your imagination, and tell me - what are the usual reactions of people in crisis situations? Common psychological responses are:
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the LOVE of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)
You and I have faced some kind of crisis in our lives, directly or through other people's experiences.
Exercise your imagination, and tell me - what are the usual reactions of people in crisis situations? Common psychological responses are:
- disbelief
- emotional numbing
- nightmares and other sleep disturbances
- anger, moodiness, irritability
- forgetfulness
- flashbacks
- survivor guilt
- hypervigilance
- loss of hope
- social withdrawal
- use of alcohol and drugs
- isolation from others
This is the world's scientific, psychological analysis of crisis.
In an article entitled “What Is a Crisis?” author Kendra Cherry offers another perspective. She writes that a person's reaction to an event determines if there is a crisis or not:
“In mental health terms, a crisis refers not necessarily to a traumatic situation or event, but to a person's reaction to an event. One person might be deeply affected by an event, while another individual suffers little or no ill effects. The Chinese word for crisis presents a good depiction of the components of a crisis. The word crisis in Chinese is formed with the characters for danger and opportunity. A crisis presents an obstacle, trauma or threat, but it also presents an opportunity for either growth or decline.”
In other words, it depends on the person.
How is a Christian to respond to a crisis? By GRACE:
G – GIVE WAY to the will of God
R – RECEIVE directions from Jesus
A – ACCEPT that God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours
C – COUNT on God's mighty resurrection power
E – EXPERIENCE God's deep and enduring love
I am learning how to respond by GRACE in the face of the most difficult crisis that I and my children experienced very recently. This is a time when we are getting to know Christ in an extraordinary way.
MY MOST RECENT CRISIS
My husband Pastor Joenard and I got married almost 17 years ago, in 1994. It was during our ministry in music and deliverance that we became close until we decided to spend our lives together serving God. Our marriage was blessed with two sons, Jeremiah, now 15, and Raphael, now 14.
Pastor Joenard and I had a wonderful marriage, with our children, serving God. There were the usual adjustments and struggles, but overall, it was a beautiful relationship because we were friends.
In January this year, Joenard was appointed youth and worship pastor of the church that we attended for the last two years. His wanted to know God's direction for his ministry by fasting and praying for eight days as he went about his tasks in church. This was the first week of February.
He was not able to recover. His health started going downhill. He suffered blurred vision, weakness, loss of appetite, remarkable weight loss, and body pain. We learned that he was diabetic, and he was not supposed to fast. He was hospitalized several times. He received treatment for diabetes, but his condition turned bad. Soon he suffered from many other illnesses including pneumonia, kidney failure, blood poisoning, malignancy in the right lung.
In a matter of weeks, from a person whom I knew to be healthy, I saw my husband fade away. He was attached to various gadgets: various intravenous fluids for the medicines, a pacemaker for his heart, a naso-gastric tube for food through his nose and throat, a lung drain, a ventilator so that he can breathe with the help of a machine.
It was very difficult. This was a crisis for us.
I wanted God to heal my husband completely. I mobilized prayer from friends all over the world where I could contact them, giving them frequent updates. People prayed, some even fasted. There were moments when Joenard's condition improved a little. And I would attribute this to the power of prayer. I thought of the parable of the persistent widow in the New Testament, and I wanted this crisis to turn out that way – that because we were persistently banging on heaven's gates, God will heal Joenard and he will come home soon.
I told God what I wanted. I asked Him to heal Joenard completely and swiftly. But it was not happening. Then the possibility entered my mind that maybe, Joenard will not be the same as before; when he comes home from the hospital. He may be on a wheelchair, considering that he had not stood up for many weeks and his leg muscles and even arms had deteriorated.
So, I thought, God is teaching me about unconditional love, such that when he comes back home on a wheelchair, it should be all right, as long as he comes home.
When he continued to deteriorate, I told God, it's okay Lord even if he cannot sit on a wheelchair yet, even if he will be bedridden; slowly over several months and with therapy, he can stand up again and be like before.
But days passed, and he was not getting better. The doctors told me he suffered a massive infection all over his body that may take time to heal.
So I sent out text messages again for prayer. Many responded through text messages and email, but one stood out. It was the message that our family friend and mentor Pastor Mon Gasilao sent on April 16:
“Just be ready kapatid. Kristiyano ka naman. Basta let [God's] will be done, although we can really cry before God and contend for Pastor's body to be back to normal, is this unto life or unto death? If this is unto life, then miracle of healing takes place. If not, just release him to the Lord.”
The same day, I got another text message from Pastor Mon Gasilao:
“Your spirit of courage can influence the state of his soul and body. With your courage you can have 'hapis na walang hinagpis'.”
These were the wisest messages I received at that time.
God revealed two visions to me. One was that Joenard was very happy singing praise and worship songs directly to God, and in that vision, God told me “Joenard will soon be singing praises to me directly, doing what he really wants to do.”
The other vision was that of a tug-of-war, a struggle between leaving the earth for an eternal home in heaven, and staying on earth because people insisted. In between was Joenard, the subject of the painful tug-of-war. Then I thought, if it is God's will for him to go to heaven, and if I insist on stopping this, then am I not getting in the way of the will of God?
But I continued to pray for Joenard's healing. I wanted it to be fast, and I even gave God a timetable. May 15, please Lord, bring Joenard home. (May 15 was when we laid Joenard's body to rest at Loyola Memorial Park.)
Joenard continued to become weak. On May 8, this was my diary entry:
“God, Father God, I am so sad that Joenard has been intubated and is on NGT again. Your will be done, Lord. Joenard told me, when he was sick already, that he has placed his life in Your hands.
This situation is hurting me. I miss Joenard so much. I remember him in the many things of each day, imagining what he would do or say if we were together. He is a part of me and my life, I feel my heart is bring crushed, half of me is dying.
I imagine what he would be saying. I miss him so much. And it hurts to think he may not come home at all. Father God, what are your plans for Joenard? And for us? Will you bring him back home to me? To us?
Lord God, who am I to tell you what to do? You know my thoughts. Yet I submit to you. Your will be done, Father God.”
May 9 diary entry, Monday:
Joenard suffered a massive stroke yesterday. Dr. Rivera, neurologist, told me this morning and showed me the CT scan photo. Brain injury like the size of a fist.
May 11 SMS message I sent out to friends:
In an article entitled “What Is a Crisis?” author Kendra Cherry offers another perspective. She writes that a person's reaction to an event determines if there is a crisis or not:
“In mental health terms, a crisis refers not necessarily to a traumatic situation or event, but to a person's reaction to an event. One person might be deeply affected by an event, while another individual suffers little or no ill effects. The Chinese word for crisis presents a good depiction of the components of a crisis. The word crisis in Chinese is formed with the characters for danger and opportunity. A crisis presents an obstacle, trauma or threat, but it also presents an opportunity for either growth or decline.”
In other words, it depends on the person.
How is a Christian to respond to a crisis? By GRACE:
G – GIVE WAY to the will of God
R – RECEIVE directions from Jesus
A – ACCEPT that God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours
C – COUNT on God's mighty resurrection power
E – EXPERIENCE God's deep and enduring love
I am learning how to respond by GRACE in the face of the most difficult crisis that I and my children experienced very recently. This is a time when we are getting to know Christ in an extraordinary way.
MY MOST RECENT CRISIS
My husband Pastor Joenard and I got married almost 17 years ago, in 1994. It was during our ministry in music and deliverance that we became close until we decided to spend our lives together serving God. Our marriage was blessed with two sons, Jeremiah, now 15, and Raphael, now 14.
Pastor Joenard and I had a wonderful marriage, with our children, serving God. There were the usual adjustments and struggles, but overall, it was a beautiful relationship because we were friends.
In January this year, Joenard was appointed youth and worship pastor of the church that we attended for the last two years. His wanted to know God's direction for his ministry by fasting and praying for eight days as he went about his tasks in church. This was the first week of February.
He was not able to recover. His health started going downhill. He suffered blurred vision, weakness, loss of appetite, remarkable weight loss, and body pain. We learned that he was diabetic, and he was not supposed to fast. He was hospitalized several times. He received treatment for diabetes, but his condition turned bad. Soon he suffered from many other illnesses including pneumonia, kidney failure, blood poisoning, malignancy in the right lung.
In a matter of weeks, from a person whom I knew to be healthy, I saw my husband fade away. He was attached to various gadgets: various intravenous fluids for the medicines, a pacemaker for his heart, a naso-gastric tube for food through his nose and throat, a lung drain, a ventilator so that he can breathe with the help of a machine.
It was very difficult. This was a crisis for us.
I wanted God to heal my husband completely. I mobilized prayer from friends all over the world where I could contact them, giving them frequent updates. People prayed, some even fasted. There were moments when Joenard's condition improved a little. And I would attribute this to the power of prayer. I thought of the parable of the persistent widow in the New Testament, and I wanted this crisis to turn out that way – that because we were persistently banging on heaven's gates, God will heal Joenard and he will come home soon.
I told God what I wanted. I asked Him to heal Joenard completely and swiftly. But it was not happening. Then the possibility entered my mind that maybe, Joenard will not be the same as before; when he comes home from the hospital. He may be on a wheelchair, considering that he had not stood up for many weeks and his leg muscles and even arms had deteriorated.
So, I thought, God is teaching me about unconditional love, such that when he comes back home on a wheelchair, it should be all right, as long as he comes home.
When he continued to deteriorate, I told God, it's okay Lord even if he cannot sit on a wheelchair yet, even if he will be bedridden; slowly over several months and with therapy, he can stand up again and be like before.
But days passed, and he was not getting better. The doctors told me he suffered a massive infection all over his body that may take time to heal.
So I sent out text messages again for prayer. Many responded through text messages and email, but one stood out. It was the message that our family friend and mentor Pastor Mon Gasilao sent on April 16:
“Just be ready kapatid. Kristiyano ka naman. Basta let [God's] will be done, although we can really cry before God and contend for Pastor's body to be back to normal, is this unto life or unto death? If this is unto life, then miracle of healing takes place. If not, just release him to the Lord.”
The same day, I got another text message from Pastor Mon Gasilao:
“Your spirit of courage can influence the state of his soul and body. With your courage you can have 'hapis na walang hinagpis'.”
These were the wisest messages I received at that time.
God revealed two visions to me. One was that Joenard was very happy singing praise and worship songs directly to God, and in that vision, God told me “Joenard will soon be singing praises to me directly, doing what he really wants to do.”
The other vision was that of a tug-of-war, a struggle between leaving the earth for an eternal home in heaven, and staying on earth because people insisted. In between was Joenard, the subject of the painful tug-of-war. Then I thought, if it is God's will for him to go to heaven, and if I insist on stopping this, then am I not getting in the way of the will of God?
But I continued to pray for Joenard's healing. I wanted it to be fast, and I even gave God a timetable. May 15, please Lord, bring Joenard home. (May 15 was when we laid Joenard's body to rest at Loyola Memorial Park.)
Joenard continued to become weak. On May 8, this was my diary entry:
“God, Father God, I am so sad that Joenard has been intubated and is on NGT again. Your will be done, Lord. Joenard told me, when he was sick already, that he has placed his life in Your hands.
This situation is hurting me. I miss Joenard so much. I remember him in the many things of each day, imagining what he would do or say if we were together. He is a part of me and my life, I feel my heart is bring crushed, half of me is dying.
I imagine what he would be saying. I miss him so much. And it hurts to think he may not come home at all. Father God, what are your plans for Joenard? And for us? Will you bring him back home to me? To us?
Lord God, who am I to tell you what to do? You know my thoughts. Yet I submit to you. Your will be done, Father God.”
May 9 diary entry, Monday:
Joenard suffered a massive stroke yesterday. Dr. Rivera, neurologist, told me this morning and showed me the CT scan photo. Brain injury like the size of a fist.
May 11 SMS message I sent out to friends:
“My best friend, my partner, my husband – Pastor Joenard Gallo – went home to our Father God on 11 May 2011 at the age of 46... The Lord gives, the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
So this illness, it turns out, was my husband's journey to heaven, to the home of Our Father. I asked God: "why did this heavenward journey have to be accompanied by a lot of pain? Why did Joenard have to be in pain as he went home to you?”
God's answer to me: “My son, Jesus, was in much greater pain when He died.”
We cannot rise above our Master. So if Jesus suffered physical pain when he died, why not us? My most recent crisis experience has been an opportunity to get closer to Jesus, and to know more of Jesus, by GRACE.
We usually define grace as “God's unmerited favor.” I looked up the dictionary and came across this beautiful definition: “God's kindness to people, which people do not at all deserve.”
GRACE: G – Give way to the will of God
Jesus Christ struggled through his crisis. Foreseeing the agony of his own death by crucifixion He prayed: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42, NIV)
Jesus Christ set an example about giving way to the will of God. In this prayer, he told God the Father what was in his heart – “please if you want to, you will not let this happen to me. But I want to obey you, Father, and even if I would not like to go through this experience, I am willing, because your will should be done.”
It takes a lot of humility and courage to say this to God. Humility, because we will be recognizing our nothingness in the presence of God. We do not deserve anything; we did not do anything to receive any favor from God. Everything we have belongs to God, even our heartbeat, even our breath of life.
If we consider how people were created, we were created very differently from everything else. Looking at the creation account in Genesis 1 to 3, almost everything was created by the word of God, by the verbal command of God:
Gen. 1: 3 - And God said, Let there be light. And there was light.
V. 6 - And God said, Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
V. 9 – And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together to one place and let the dry land appear, and it was so...
And so on. God commanded, and creation came about by His word.
But for human beings, it was different.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. (Genesis 2:7)
So with man, the Lord God breathed life into his nostrils, and he became a living soul. Thus, even our breathe of life, even our heartbeat, comes from God.
GRACE: R - RECEIVE directions from Jesus
Jesus: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)
John 14:21 - “Whoever has my commands and obey them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”
The way of the world is not the same as the way of God. We are brought up in a system which says that we must define our own directions and meaning in life. Our destiny is in our hands. We can be what we want to be. In fact, there is a saying: “What the mind can conceive, he can achieve.” Self-made men are respected, because of the belief that we can chart our own life directions.
But there is no such thing as a self-made man or woman. We owe everything to God, and can find fulfillment only when we obey the voice of God. Any measure of success would be empty apart from God.
Especially in a crisis situation, we must receive directions only from God. Many voices will be coming from different directions. Voices that seem to be saying that this or that is the wise thing to do. But is that wisdom coming from God or from somewhere else?
Not all wisdom comes from God. James 3:13-18 talks about two kinds of wisdom, wisdom from the devil, and wisdom from heaven.“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every evil practice.
“But the wisdom that comes from heagen is first of all pure; submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.”
So in a crisis situation, stop and listen to the voice of God. We will know if we are obeying wisdom from heaven if our actions have the following characteristics:
GRACE: A - ACCEPT that God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours
There are many things we do not understand. I for one do not understand why God took Joenard home at this early age, when we have had only 16 years of marriage, and we still have two teenagers to bring up.
Another diary entry:
18 May 2011.
Widow. Single mother to 2 teenaged sons.
A civil status I did not expect. Still getting used to the word and all it means. Widow.
So this illness, it turns out, was my husband's journey to heaven, to the home of Our Father. I asked God: "why did this heavenward journey have to be accompanied by a lot of pain? Why did Joenard have to be in pain as he went home to you?”
God's answer to me: “My son, Jesus, was in much greater pain when He died.”
We cannot rise above our Master. So if Jesus suffered physical pain when he died, why not us? My most recent crisis experience has been an opportunity to get closer to Jesus, and to know more of Jesus, by GRACE.
We usually define grace as “God's unmerited favor.” I looked up the dictionary and came across this beautiful definition: “God's kindness to people, which people do not at all deserve.”
GRACE: G – Give way to the will of God
Jesus Christ struggled through his crisis. Foreseeing the agony of his own death by crucifixion He prayed: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42, NIV)
Jesus Christ set an example about giving way to the will of God. In this prayer, he told God the Father what was in his heart – “please if you want to, you will not let this happen to me. But I want to obey you, Father, and even if I would not like to go through this experience, I am willing, because your will should be done.”
It takes a lot of humility and courage to say this to God. Humility, because we will be recognizing our nothingness in the presence of God. We do not deserve anything; we did not do anything to receive any favor from God. Everything we have belongs to God, even our heartbeat, even our breath of life.
If we consider how people were created, we were created very differently from everything else. Looking at the creation account in Genesis 1 to 3, almost everything was created by the word of God, by the verbal command of God:
Gen. 1: 3 - And God said, Let there be light. And there was light.
V. 6 - And God said, Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
V. 9 – And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together to one place and let the dry land appear, and it was so...
And so on. God commanded, and creation came about by His word.
But for human beings, it was different.
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. (Genesis 2:7)
So with man, the Lord God breathed life into his nostrils, and he became a living soul. Thus, even our breathe of life, even our heartbeat, comes from God.
GRACE: R - RECEIVE directions from Jesus
Jesus: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27)
John 14:21 - “Whoever has my commands and obey them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”
The way of the world is not the same as the way of God. We are brought up in a system which says that we must define our own directions and meaning in life. Our destiny is in our hands. We can be what we want to be. In fact, there is a saying: “What the mind can conceive, he can achieve.” Self-made men are respected, because of the belief that we can chart our own life directions.
But there is no such thing as a self-made man or woman. We owe everything to God, and can find fulfillment only when we obey the voice of God. Any measure of success would be empty apart from God.
Especially in a crisis situation, we must receive directions only from God. Many voices will be coming from different directions. Voices that seem to be saying that this or that is the wise thing to do. But is that wisdom coming from God or from somewhere else?
Not all wisdom comes from God. James 3:13-18 talks about two kinds of wisdom, wisdom from the devil, and wisdom from heaven.“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every evil practice.
“But the wisdom that comes from heagen is first of all pure; submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.”
So in a crisis situation, stop and listen to the voice of God. We will know if we are obeying wisdom from heaven if our actions have the following characteristics:
- pure
- submissive
- full of mercy and good fruit
- impartial
- sincere.
GRACE: A - ACCEPT that God's ways and thoughts are higher than ours
There are many things we do not understand. I for one do not understand why God took Joenard home at this early age, when we have had only 16 years of marriage, and we still have two teenagers to bring up.
Another diary entry:
18 May 2011.
Widow. Single mother to 2 teenaged sons.
A civil status I did not expect. Still getting used to the word and all it means. Widow.
How can we understand this? No matter how hard I speculate, I will never know the answer at this time and in this earthly life. Yet I have this assurance: "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:8-9)
We simply have to accept the sovereignty of God, and continue trusting in His wisdom no matter what happens to us.
This was the lesson in Job when he said in Chapter 1:21 after he lost his family and property: “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”
It is so amazing that he praised God despite the circumstances. And this is what God wants us to continue doing, for 1 Thessalonians. 5:18 says “In everything, give thanks...”
GRACE: C - COUNT ON God's mighty resurrection power
Earlier, I mentioned the definition of a crisis. A crisis becomes such depending on the reaction of the person affected. Some are affected severely, some not so much. Our theology has a lot to do with how we respond to a crisis.
As I process the passing away of my husband, I remember many people saying, life is short. Especially in Joenard's situation, for he died at the age of only 46. Then people tell me they are sympathizing for the loss of my husband. I was very very sad at times, and the sadness had physical manifestations. I could not breathe. I felt my body was being cut into two. I felt my heart was being wrung. It was physically painful.
Then God revealed to me one important realization. Joenard is not lost. I know exactly where he is. He is now with God because he has received and acknowledged Christ as Lord and Savior. John 3:16 states “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
So if Joenard is not lost, and if Joenard is with God, is this a cause for loneliness or joy? Of course I am lonely because we miss his physical presence, but there is an assurance that we will be with him again.
Why? Because God is a powerful God, and what He says is true. I rely on Philippians 3:10 which says “All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised him to life.” (CEV)
GRACE: E - EXPERIENCE God's deep and enduring love
A crisis situation is an opportunity to experience God's deep, enduring love and gentle care for us all. St. Paul wrote:
We simply have to accept the sovereignty of God, and continue trusting in His wisdom no matter what happens to us.
This was the lesson in Job when he said in Chapter 1:21 after he lost his family and property: “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”
It is so amazing that he praised God despite the circumstances. And this is what God wants us to continue doing, for 1 Thessalonians. 5:18 says “In everything, give thanks...”
GRACE: C - COUNT ON God's mighty resurrection power
Earlier, I mentioned the definition of a crisis. A crisis becomes such depending on the reaction of the person affected. Some are affected severely, some not so much. Our theology has a lot to do with how we respond to a crisis.
As I process the passing away of my husband, I remember many people saying, life is short. Especially in Joenard's situation, for he died at the age of only 46. Then people tell me they are sympathizing for the loss of my husband. I was very very sad at times, and the sadness had physical manifestations. I could not breathe. I felt my body was being cut into two. I felt my heart was being wrung. It was physically painful.
Then God revealed to me one important realization. Joenard is not lost. I know exactly where he is. He is now with God because he has received and acknowledged Christ as Lord and Savior. John 3:16 states “For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
So if Joenard is not lost, and if Joenard is with God, is this a cause for loneliness or joy? Of course I am lonely because we miss his physical presence, but there is an assurance that we will be with him again.
Why? Because God is a powerful God, and what He says is true. I rely on Philippians 3:10 which says “All I want is to know Christ and the power that raised him to life.” (CEV)
GRACE: E - EXPERIENCE God's deep and enduring love
A crisis situation is an opportunity to experience God's deep, enduring love and gentle care for us all. St. Paul wrote:
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the LOVE of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)
I would like to focus now on a crisis situation that the disciples faced when they went out to sea, as written in Mark 4:35-41. This is an account of Jesus sleeping on a cushion in the boat with his disciples when there was a storm. The disciples knew the sea. They were fishermen. They were afraid because they knew what kind of storm this was. Yet Jesus was asleep. And when they woke him up, He commanded the storm, and rebuked them for their little faith, for bring afraid of the crisis. What do we learn from this?
Yes, we learn that Jesus is powerful. Yes, we learn that He is in control for even the wind and the seas obey him. But most important is that Jesus was in the boat with the disciples when the crisis was happening.
When Joenard was in his very critical condition, I was asking Jesus, “please show me where you are now.” And I would have a vision of him embracing me.
He was in the crisis with me. He was in the crisis with Joenard. He was in the crisis with my children. Loving us, embracing us, assuring us that he was in control. He is in control.
To me, this is the most important lesson in facing crisis with GRACE – that we are to enjoy Jesus' gentle care and presence in our storm.
God bless you all.
* Written on July 27, 2011
Sources:
- Crisis defined. Oxford Dictionary.
- 1988 study by Wainrib and Block
- About.com guide
Yes, we learn that Jesus is powerful. Yes, we learn that He is in control for even the wind and the seas obey him. But most important is that Jesus was in the boat with the disciples when the crisis was happening.
When Joenard was in his very critical condition, I was asking Jesus, “please show me where you are now.” And I would have a vision of him embracing me.
He was in the crisis with me. He was in the crisis with Joenard. He was in the crisis with my children. Loving us, embracing us, assuring us that he was in control. He is in control.
To me, this is the most important lesson in facing crisis with GRACE – that we are to enjoy Jesus' gentle care and presence in our storm.
God bless you all.
* Written on July 27, 2011
Sources:
- Crisis defined. Oxford Dictionary.
- 1988 study by Wainrib and Block
- About.com guide
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