Have you ever been through a storm that caused you to see God in a different way? Often, we learn much about ourselves, and our God, in the midst of challenges—when we reach the end of our own strength. This was the case for Jesus’s disciples in Matthew 14.

Most of us are familiar with the story of Jesus walking on the water in the midst of the horrible storm that kept His followers trapped all night long on the water. What we don’t often see, though, is the paradigm shift that the disciples went through as a result. You see, the problem was not that the men didn’t trust Jesus at all—these were the disciples, and they had was a level of faith. The problem was they were trusting the weather conditions more. Many of us are in the same boat: we do trust God, but we trust what’s happening in our circumstances more.

Trusting God is simple, but it’s not always easy, particularly you’re about to go down. But what the disciples learned is that storms allow us to see God in a new way. Jesus wanted His men to take Him out of the small box they’d placed Him in. He wasn’t just a life coach, an eloquent rabbi, or a good teacher. He set up this situation to show them that only God could save them—that Jesus had divine power over the wind and waves.

There are some things you will only see about God in your storm. God wants to do a new thing in our lives—some things that have never been done in the same way before. The disciples had no point of reference for seeing Jesus walking on the water, so they were afraid. As fierce as the storm was, they encountered Someone mightier than an angry sea.”

It’s true that we don’t like storms and challenges. But if we shift our perspective, we can recognize that God’s about to reveal something—something we wouldn’t otherwise see. So in the middle of the storm, I can rejoice and say, “I’m about to see God in a fresh way! God’s about to show Himself strong.” Are you able to have more faith in Jesus than in the conditions around you? Can you see Him walking on the water?

Live Big!

Dr. Derek Grier