Today I’m happy to welcome Jessica Brodie as she shares an encouraging reminder for all of us.
“But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out His hand and caught him.” Matthew 14:30-31a
Between kid demands and colossal work deadlines, I had a major case of stress overload, and my schedule wouldn’t ease soon. By Wednesday, I had a killer headache, and by Friday, I was catching ten-minute naps in my minivan during car line to stay sane.
“Mommy’s just a little edgy,” I’d apologize after snapping at the kids instead of counting to ten.
When I woke up with my jaw clenched tight from grinding my teeth all night, full-on dreading the day ahead instead of steeped in gratitude, I knew something had to change. My soul cried out: Help. God, please—just help.
Sometimes the last thing I think to do is turn to the Lord. In my pride, I think I should be able to handle the demands of life.
But I’m not my savior—Jesus is. In looking up, in reaching out, I find relief.
In the passage today’s verse comes from, Peter saw Jesus walking on water and wanted to join Him, and so, Jesus invited him to come. Peter began to do the impossible. But then he saw the strong wind and became frightened. He faltered and began to fall.
The same happens with us. We start to walk in faith, and at first everything seems fine. Then something happens—calamity befalls, or we lose our nerve—and we start to sink.
If I could only remember the example we get in the Gospel of Matthew, I know I’d save myself a ton of time, suffering, and aggravation. For right there in Peter’s reaction and Jesus’s response, we see what we’re supposed to do when we begin to sink: Not try to fix things ourselves, but call out to Jesus.
In Him find the relief we so desperately crave.
Are you struggling to find joy in your current situation or season? If so, Wholly Loved Ministries wants to help. Grab a copy of our latest Bible study, Unshakable Unbreakable Joy to learn how to find joy in times of stress, in the middle of relational conflict, during hardship, and every moment in between.
Wholly Loved Ministries also invites you to connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, and to join our private Facebook community HERE.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Unshakable Unbreakable Joy: A 10-Week Bible study:
Joy. We all want it, and in Christ, we can all have it. Regardless of our circumstances, our blessings or challenges, we can have unshakable unbreakable joy in Christ. And this joy begins by understanding what true biblical joy is, where it comes from, and how we can best cultivate this precious spiritual gift.
We can experience unshakable, unbreakable joy no matter the situation because true biblical joy isn’t dependent on our circumstances. Joy is a gift God gives us come to know Him better and deepen our intimacy with Him. This study helps women experience the abiding joy of an ever-deepening relationship with Christ and reliance on His grace.
A ten-week study with:
- Weekly video sessions
- Group discussion questions
- Take-home lessons
Promo video link: https://vimeo.com/495012636
Buy it on Amazon HERE.
Find it on the Wholly Loved Website HERE.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jessica Brodie is an award-winning Christian journalist, author, blogger, editor, and devotional writer. For the last decade, she’s been the editor of the South Carolina United Methodist Advocate, the oldest newspaper in Methodism, which has won 118 journalism awards during her tenure. She is the author of Feed My Sheep: A 40-Day Devotional to Develop a Heart for Hunger Ministry (2019) and More Like Jesus: A Devotional Journey (2018) and editor of Called By God: 30 Inspiring Call Stories from United Methodists (2020) and Stories of Racial Awakening: Narratives on Changed Hearts and Lives of South Carolina United Methodists (2018), all from her newspaper’s Advocate Press. She is a seasoned speaker and contributor to Crosswalk, Christianity.com, and the United Methodist News Service, among many others. She has a weekly faith blog at JessicaBrodie.com and is part of the team at Wholly Loved Ministries. Represented by Bob Hostetler of The Steve Laube Agency, she is the author of two contemporary women’s fiction novels awaiting publication, The Memory Garden and Tangled Roots. The Memory Garden won the 2018 Genesis Award for Contemporary Fiction from American Christian Fiction Writers. Married, Brodie has four children and stepchildren and lives in Lexington, South Carolina.
My social media links:
Website: JessicaBrodie.com
Twitter: @jessicajbrodie
Facebook Author: Facebook.com/authorjessicajbrodie
Instagram: jessicajbrodie
Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicajbrodie
Pinterest: jessicajbrodie
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