At peace in His presence
September 11, 2007
By Jerry Scott
Sometimes it can be hard to know if we should accept the status quo or work for change. Recently, I found myself in the middle of one of those dilemmas. I struggled, complained (inwardly), and tried to forget my inner conflict. The fight sapped my strength. Finally, in prayer, I handed it over to the Lord. “Lead me through this time. Keep my heart at peace even as You lead me to contentment with what You provide for me, and teach me what my part in change should be.”
I was praying a version of a prayer that ends most 12-step group meetings, commonly known as the Serenity Prayer. This prayer, authorship unknown, says, “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference. Amen.”
The counsel of Scripture teaches us to be content, while encouraging us to be activists! We are never to be fatalistic, detaching ourselves from this painful world while just waiting for divine deliverance. Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit and tells us to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19,20, NIV).
What a commission! Our field is the world. Our work is not finished until every man and woman has heard the good news about Jesus Christ. If I reflect on my limited abilities, even factoring in my network of fellow believers, the task is overwhelming and creates an unsettled heart in me. That is why Jesus concluded as He did, reminding us we are not in this alone! “I am with you always!” His presence in our lives is the key to serenity! Whatever the challenge, whatever our need, if we are “in Christ,” we do not face it alone.
There is a story Mark tells us in his Gospel. Most likely his source was Peter, who mentored Mark in the work of Christ. My imagination has the two of them sharing a meal when the older man leans back and stretches, getting ready to tell a story that makes him laugh at his lack of faith at the time.
“Let me tell about a time when I thought I was going to die. And then Jesus did the most amazing thing that left me shaking in my shoes!” Peter then told about this night on a stormy lake, and Mark passed it on to all of us.
“As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.’
So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion.
“The disciples woke him up, shouting, ‘Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?’
“When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Silence! Be still!’
“Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.
“Then he asked them, ‘Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?’
“The disciples were absolutely terrified. ‘Who is this man?’ they asked each other. ‘Even the wind and waves obey him!’ ” (Mark 4:35-42, NLT).
Is there a storm brewing around you? Are you faced with a situation that makes you want to run for the hills? Are you unsure of your response to a challenge — to work harder, to wait it out, to stand back and see what develops, or to dig in and work for change?
God will guide you. But His guidance is best discerned when we are at peace, even in the middle of the storm. When we are frantic with fear, thrashing about like a fly caught in a spider’s web, our spiritual discernment becomes next to nil! Pray early, pray always, pray with faith! Keep Jesus in your boat. His presence brings serenity; serenity makes us effective in accomplishing the work He has called us to do in His name.
“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!
The Lord of hosts [General of the Angel Armies] is with us;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.” (Psalm 46:10,11, NKJV)
Jerry D. Scott is senior pastor of Washington (N.J.) Assembly of God.
“Every time I’ve had a major revelation of God or He has asked me to do something specific it has been in the context of the wilderness.”
“Conversation: Tri Robinson/Creation Stewardship”
Today’s Pentecostal Evangel, September 9, 2007
Want to read more articles like this? Subscribe to Today's Pentecostal Evangel at http://www.tpe.ag.org/subs.cfm.
