Just a little bit wet and wild!

Hello again, as you can probably see I am sat in my car again writing this blog post. 

The weather here is certainly wet and wild today at is only going to get worse! With a massive storm set to hit us in the next few days I have a feeling this is only going to be the begining.

I went to a local Salvation Army Corps a few weeks ago for a meeting; and the officer did his sermon on lifes storms. Now I don't want to be copying anyone but there is only so much you can say about storms, so I might overlap in certain places!

Sat here in my car though, as it is battered by the wind there is no other topic I could really write this blog post about. I must admit storms and the weather amazes me; and I am often told to stop talking about the weather!

But it really does amaze me. As does the sea. Sat here now I can see the sea smashing into the rocks. At the moment the tide is quite far out, but as it comes in the waves will hit the shore with more and more force causing more damage. 

Now being a sailor I know a thing or two about storms at sea. Even with today's modern ships and safety equipment they can be terrifying! 

The thing about storms is you just can't escape them, when you are in one you can try to move the ship to calmer waters, but sometimes there is no escape and all you can do is try to ride out the storm. You just have to try to make life as comfortable as you can and deal with it.

In the Bible the Psalmist must have talked to a few sailors because this is what he wrote about storms in a psalm.

Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters, They see the works of the Lord, And His wonders in the deep. 

For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. 

They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses. 

He calms the storm, So that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. 

(Psalms 107:23-30 NKJV)

Now I know at times almost all sailors have called out to God asking him to calm storms. Usually it's just after they have been sick, or more likely just before they are! (Might be talking from experience here!) 

But I think this psalm can be thought of a lot more like life. Often we have storms and troubles. Often we have massive problems and it is not unusual for us to feel battered by the waves that life throws at us. 

At times like this it is vital that we call out to God and ask for his help.  We may not see these problems instantly disappear. We may not see anything initially happen. But when we stop trying to cope and deal with everything ourselves and ask God to help us, he can calm the storms of our lives. Sometimes though the storms are there to build us and make us stronger in the long run. So we need to pray that God will help us, guide us and strengthen us, to help us ride out the storm.

So Why not give it a try? Speak to God honestly about your problems and see what happens. At the end of the day what do you have to loose?