At the Mercy of The Storm – Luke 8:22-25 – Grant Vissers

Good morning. I'm gonna move this an attempt

to not spill my coffee. And while I'm doing that, if hey

kiddos, if you want to go to Sunday school, you can think

there's a bunch of kids and teachers and volunteers who are

waiting to meet you in the community room, which is the

room back that way. If you want to go, if you want

to stay in here too, that's fine.

I promise you, you'll have more fun there than here.

I don't know what that says about the rest of us.

Big kids can go that way as well if he would like.

I do want to say welcome. It's good to have you all here,

big kids, little kids alike. If I'm a new face, my name is

Grant and I'm one of the pastors here at the church.

And it is good to gather and to worship together.

It's good to sing and pray, read Scripture, contemplate, think

together about what it might mean for us as individuals, as

households, as families, and as a church community together.

So grateful to be able to do that in this way.

We're going to spend a little bit of time reading and

reflecting on Scripture now and then we're going to celebrate

communion together as as a church.

And as we continue worship, there'll be more songs and more

prayers as well on behalf of our community.

But we've been working our way through a gospel, a book called

Luke, and we've made it to Luke chapter 8 at this point in in

Luke 8 · chapter mention

our working through. And we have a story here that I

think is really powerful and powerful to come out of that

last hymn together and then read these lines of this story about

Jesus calming the storm. So Luke chapter 8.

Luke 8 · chapter mention

And we're going to read just a few verses, 22 through to 25.

It's like the better part of the way through your Bible if you're

trying to find it. And if you want to follow along

on a phone as well, you can do that.

I'm going to pray and then we'll read and work our way through.

God, thanks for your love and for your grace.

Thank you that you are with us and thanks that this that we do

as we gather. Like this isn't because we think

it's a great idea. And hey, go us.

We do this to lift high the name of Jesus.

We gather and we worship because this is your spirit who calls us

together and who gathers us together and who equips us to do

the things of the Kingdom in the world.

And so God, I pray that you would do that today.

Pray that you would remind us of who you are.

And I pray that you'd remind us of whose we are, that we belong

to you. And yet I pray that in that we

might be able to and peace, and in that reality we might be able

to say it is well with my soul. So as we read these lines, yeah,

would you remind us that you're close and that you care and that

you've got something for each of us today?

In Jesus name I pray, Amen. So starting in verse 22, it says

this one day Jesus said to his disciples, let us go over to the

other side of the lake. So they got into a boat and set

out. As they sailed, he fell asleep

as a squaw came down on the lake so that the boat was being

swamped and they were in great danger.

The disciples went and woke him, saying, Master, Master, we're

going to drown. He got up and rebuked the wind

and the raging waters. The storm subsided and all was

calm. Where is your faith?

He asked the disciples in fear and amazement.

They asked one another, Who is this?

He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him.

So I don't know if you have a memory of the largest storm that

you've ever found yourself in. I I remember the biggest storm

that I've been in in my entire life.

The largest scale storm that that I lived through was a

hurricane was Hurricane Sandy when Connie and I lived in

Princeton, NJ. And so I remember there was

evacuation and there was, you know, news outlets were covering

this thing for weeks leading up, certainly for days preparing.

People say, hey, if you're in this zone, you're going to want

to get out of that zone. And if you're in this zone,

that's OK. But maybe go buy a little extra

food and water and things like toilet paper and that kind of

stuff. But you stay put.

We don't want to clog the roads. And so there were evacuations

for this storm. And at Princeton, we were not in

the, like, immediate evacuation zone.

We were in the hunker down. Things will be well for you.

Just stay put and don't do anything silly.

Zone. That's that's a quote.

And so we prepared through that storm.

We prepared. I remember we would gather like

we went out and got extra food and we definitely did the water

thing and like we filled bathtubs up with water.

So like just in case the power goes out and the no power no

meant no water and no water pressure.

And so like we stocked everything up and we didn't plug

our bathtub well enough. And so by the end of it, it had

all drained out useless. But like I said, we stocked up

on food, but we also did things like we, you know, got in a car

and drove to the Jersey Shore to kind of watch the storm come in,

which was not recommended for us to do.

And so we kind of, we could see it from a distance.

We saw that storm roll in And, and I remember it being like, it

was the largest storm that I had been in, but it was not the

scariest storm that I have lived through.

That storm, Hurricane Sandy was a devastating storm for many,

many people. It altered people's lives.

Absolutely. It did for us.

It was not. It didn't land that scary of a

storm. The scariest storms that I've

been in, and maybe those of you who have been in similar storms

can relate, were a lot smaller than that hurricane.

But what made them scary for me was that I experienced them

while I was in a canoe on the water.

And so, for example, I remember 1 canoe trip that I was leading

in that we had to pop out of 1 lake or one river rather into

Georgian Bay and then skirt, you know, the side of Georgian Bay

and pop into another river and go back.

And it just so happened that the day we were scheduled to pop out

of 1 river and run Georgian Bay, there was a big thunderstorm

that had rolled in. And so we hit Jordan Bay.

And I thought, this is it. Like this is this is the, this

is the last time anybody lets me lead a canoe trip Because, like,

the boats were being swamped and the winds were rolling in and

canoes were some of them tipping and capsizing.

And we had to go in and rescue some of the people who fell out

of their boats. And we had to pull in all the

food from whatever boat had dropped all of its, you know,

contents into the water and pull out like things that had gotten

soggy. And that, for me, was one of the

scariest storms that I can remember.

And I still remember the feeling going, like, are we all going

over? Like, what happens when the last

canoe tips? What happens when there are no

more screws to save, you know, rescue the other ones.

What made it scary for me was that we were on Georgian Bay in

a boat. The water, I think, has this way

of amplifying a storm, or at least for me, amplifying what

feels like the threat of the storm.

Like, the stakes feel a little higher when you're, like, not on

land. And when tipping means falling

into a storm and a lake, storms swirl and they confuse and they

bring fear and they pose as a threat.

And so I think like, it's no wonder we often use the same

language, the language of storm, to talk about the metaphorical

storms of life, the things that also swirl and confuse and bring

fear and stand as looming threat over us.

But this was not a metaphorical storm.

It was a very real storm, and the disciples had very real fear

in the face of this storm. And so when we reread and work

our way through one day, it says, Jesus said to his

disciples, let's go over to the other side of the lake.

This is the Sea of Galilee. And so they got into a boat, not

a big boat. This would have been a fishing

boat. And that fishing boat is think

closer to a canoe. It would be a really big canoe,

but closer to a canoe than it is to like a modern day fishing

boat. And they set out as they sailed.

He fell asleep. Jesus is asleep in the back of

the boat. And while he's sleeping, a

swallow came down on the lake so that the boat was being swamped,

so much water into the boat that it was capsizing, sinking.

They were going down and they were in great danger.

The disciples went and woke him, saying and if you highlight

things, this is one that I would highlight.

Master, Master, we are going to drown.

But when I pictured the disciples, I don't picture these

disciples who are like afraid for their life.

Like, that's not the kind of disciple that I picture when I

think of these men, many of them who were fishermen, right?

I picture fishermen who were afraid of nothing, like

Deadliest Catch style. Have you seen that TV show

alright? Like afraid of nothing, ride the

waves, laugh at the wind kind of fishermen.

People who were used to being on the water, people who lived

through storms, people who saw them coming and didn't bat an

eye, people who were accustomed to the water.

But there's a moment in the Gospels and we looked at it.

It's in Luke in the beginning chapters.

I think about Luke 4 where this happens.

Jesus calls a man named Peter, who was a fisherman to follow

him, to become a disciple. And in that moment, Jesus gets

into Peter's boat and he says, hey, Take Me Out into the water

so I can speak to people. And then a little bit bit into

that encounter. He says, hey, take now, let's go

out from the shallows to where it is deep.

Let's go out into deep water. And the surprise in that story

is that Peter actually does it. He listens to Jesus and he says,

OK, we'll go out into the deep water because fishermen in

Jesus's day didn't go into the deep water.

That's not where they fished. They fished the shallows.

They fished the shoreline. They fished where it was safe.

They went out just far enough to put down their Nets so that they

could catch fish, reel it in and get them back to shore.

They weren't used to where the water was deep.

They didn't venture out into the deep water.

In fact, in Jesus's day, the deep water was not just a scary,

sort of unknown place. It it was actually a place of

deep fear. It, it was a place that they did

not venture. Don't tell me to go out into the

deep water. I'm not comfortable there, not

just because it's deep, but because in Jesus's day, the deep

water, the sea, was the place where evil dwelt.

It was thought to be the place of spirits and of darkness.

It was, many people believed, the place where rival gods would

do battle against one another. And so it wasn't the place you

wanted to be, not when the water was calm, and not when storms

swept in and the winds and the waves rose.

It was a place of fear. It was a place of power that

can't be understood and certainly could never be

controlled. The sea was a place of storm.

It was a place of chaos. It was a place of danger, like

real danger. And so that's the fear that we

hear in this plea to Jesus. Master, Master, we're going to

drown. We're gonna die like this is the

end. And for the disciples, it's real

fear. It's not the kind of fear that

you bounce back from really quickly.

I was startled for a second, but like, I can take a couple deep

breaths and maybe my heart rate will descend a little bit and

I'll be OK. Like this is the kind of fear

that takes root in your soul and that shakes you to the core.

The disciples believe they are going to die.

They are afraid for their lives. Meanwhile, Jesus is asleep.

Jesus fell asleep in the back of the boat.

Some days I wish I could sleep that easily.

Sometimes I do sleep that easily.

I don't know about How about you, but I think this is what

causes this deep seated fear and disconnect even for the

disciples. Jesus is asleep.

He's not sitting side by side with the other disciples rowing

like trying to get to the shore. He's not awake and seeing the

storm and going, OK guys like we're all in this together, but

we gotta work hard to get the boat out of the deep water and

back to where we started. He's not even awake and saying

to them, hey, just it's a little bit further, let's keep going.

He's in their minds like non existent.

And the thing about the disciples in this moment, and I

see so Jesus is asleep, there's boats being swamped, there's a

big storm. They're terrified.

They think they know how the story is going to end.

They don't say master, master, we are afraid.

They don't say, hey Jesus, wake up.

Check out how bad this storm has got.

What should we do? They say we are going to drown.

The disciples think they know how the story will end and that

this story, their story right, is kind of the end.

Jesus is asleep. They're afraid, and in their

fear they become paralyzed. We're gonna drown.

They see only one possible outcome to this situation, and

it is the worst possible outcome.

And I think in many ways that is what fear does, narrows your

vision and not always in like a I'm focused and I'm ready to

face this kind of way but you know, I can't see my hand in

front of my face Kind of narrowed vision.

And we start to believe that there is only one outcome and

that there will ever only be 1 outcome, and that the outcome is

the worst possible outcome and it's assured we're going to

drown. And Jesus is asleep in the back

of the boat. Their friend is asleep in the

back of the boat. Except when you think about it,

Jesus isn't just their friend. Jesus is there, Rabbi.

He's their leader, he's their teacher.

He's the 1:00 they have been following.

He's the 1:00 they have been literally walking behind

learning from. He's the one who healed the man

with the deformed hand. And maybe they begin to think

and wonder, like he's also the one who healed the sick.

He's the one who healed the sick servant of that Roman officer.

Yeah, we were there. We saw it.

We witnessed it happen. He's the one who raised the

widow's dead son back to life. Like, what's this guy doing in

the back of the boat? We've seen him do the thing.

We saw it with our own eyes. Like surely he cares about us as

well. He cared about them.

Like, does this mean that he cares less about us?

And Master, we're gonna drown. Don't you care about what is

going on? Don't you care how this story

ends for us? Like, can't you see what's

happening around like, wake up? Maybe it's time to not be

sleeping. Maybe it's time to get up and do

something. The storm pushes the disciples

in many ways, to the ends of themselves, to the end of their

ability, to the end of their resources, to the end of what

they see possible. Everything.

They're at their end, but also with those words that disciples

begin the hard journey of choosing to trust Jesus.

We can't see any way forward. There's no way through this

storm. We are gonna drown.

Master. Master, they cling to Jesus and

it isn't easy and it isn't quick.

It is slow and it's painful. It takes them being afraid for

their lives, but eventually they get there.

They voice their fear. They named the thing, and they

learn in that moment that there is no other choice but to trust

Jesus. NT Wright says that we learn the

same lesson whenever we come to the end of our own resources and

there discover that the only option we have is to throw

ourselves on the mercy of Jesus. Because there are no, there's no

one and nothing else that will help.

And he continues to say in that moment when that happens, when

you are pushed to the edges of what you think and see is

possible and doable, the choice of faith is absolute.

And what he means is either we trust in Jesus or we are left at

the mercy of the storm. And that's the moment these

disciples are in. Either they turn and they trust

in Jesus, or they are left to the mercy of the storm.

And so he Jesus got up, and he rebuked the wind and the raging

waters. The storm subsided and always

calm. We're gonna get to that next

line in a minute. He rebuked the wind and the

raging waters. To rebuke is a very specific

word that Luke has chosen to use here.

To rebuke means to put in its proper place.

It can also mean to assign proper value to something as it

is fitting. It is to name something for what

it is, to give it its right place, its right value.

It is speaking with authority and it is speaking with

authoritative correction. It can also carry this meaning

with it like to restrain or to silence and even in some

situations to restore. So Jesus gets up and he rebukes

the wind and the raging waters. It's also very specific language

used throughout the New Testament.

So in Luke 435, which we've looked at, Jesus says this, be

quiet, Jesus said sternly. Jesus rebuked and come out of

him. Then the demon through the man

down before them all and came out without injuring him.

You know in another place just says when Jesus saw a crowd is

running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit.

You deaf and mute spirit. He said I command you come out

of him and never never enter him again.

The 3rd Jesus rebuked the demon and it came out of the boy.

He was healed in that moment. To rebuke something is the

language of exorcism. It's the language of evil being

called out and cast away. And not like in a Horror Story,

horror movie kind of way, but in a very real, no ifs, ands or

buts about it. No drama, no show to speak to

evil and to put it in its place. It is about things being put in

their proper place and it's a language that reveals.

It's language that reveals to us that that nothing has authority

over Jesus. No physical storm, no evil

spirit. Jesus speaks and the demons

flee. He rebukes, and the seas are

quieted. They're calm.

It's the language of exorcism. It's also the language of

creation. It's the language used to draw

out order from chaos. It's the language used in

Genesis in the beginning, when God creates the heavens and the

earth, what do we see? So in Genesis, the earth, it

says it was formless and empty. Darkness was over the surface of

the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

And then there's one line, and God said God spoke.

And with God's word in creation, what God is doing is ordering

creation, putting it in its proper place, naming it and

calling it to be out of chaos and toward order.

And that's what the creation narrative points us to, right?

It points us out of darkness and toward light, out of unorganized

masses and land and sea, into organized waters and dry land,

and then through all of creation, from chaos to order.

God spoke and there was light and there was dry land and

things were in their right place, says He got up, so he

woke up and he rebuked the wind and the raging waters.

The storms subsided and everything was calm.

The sea became perfectly calm. This word here, calm in Greek,

only appears in three gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, and it

only appears in those books in this one story.

This is the only place that that word shows up.

It's not like what it means to be emotionally calmed.

It it is a very specific word. It's not emotional peaceful

feelings. It's not like Serenity now if

you've watched Seinfeld. It's not calm, cool and

collected. It's not.

I can take some deep breaths and get through this.

Whatever it is, it is absolute. It is perfect stillness where

there was once chaos and raging storms and it's not attainable.

It's not manageable. It's it's it's not something

that we can work to find and discover on our own.

No amount of quiet time, no amount of reading.

No, not like nothing you can do. This is a gift that is imparted.

It is instilled by God. It is spoken into existence by

Jesus. It is specifically and

singularly a result of the power that Jesus speaks to order

things as they should be, to cast out what is broken, the

things of death, and to instill, to breathe in, to speak in

something that is life giving and perfected.

In its place. The storm subsided and all was

calm. Jesus has power over the storm,

no matter the storm. And then he turns to his

disciples. Where is your faith?

He asked. The question hangs in the air

without an answer. Jesus doesn't answer it.

The disciples don't answer it, but they know the answer.

They know what Jesus is getting at.

I see. I think we often juxtapose faith

and doubt, and we live and we think and we operate in this

world in which to doubt something must mean that there

is no faith, that doubt and faith don't cooperate, that they

don't work well together. To doubt in some way means to

lose faith. But for Jesus doubts not the

opposite of faith. Fear is the opposite of faith.

Listen, Jesus isn't saying a few things.

He's not saying that if the disciples had just a little bit

more faith, if you just had more than the storm wouldn't have

come. Like that's not what Jesus is

saying. Jesus is in the boat with them

and the storm still raged. So it's not a matter of if you

have enough faith, the storms aren't going to come.

And Jesus also isn't saying that if the disciples had more faith,

just a little bit more, how much we're not sure, but just a

little more, that they could have calmed the storm

themselves, That they could have risen up and spoken to the

storms and said be still and everything would have been OK,

That they could do this for themselves without his help.

He is not saying that. The challenge that Jesus poses

in this question, though, I think is clear.

He's asking in whom do you trust?

Where do you place your trust? These storms have these unique

abilities to reveal where I've placed my trust and where you

have placed yours. I don't actually believe that

that that that Jesus is chastising the disciples here.

Like I don't think he's saying, hey, where was your faith?

It was absent. That's a little bit of the

implication. Instead, I think what Jesus is

doing is he's using a question to call them into greater faith.

Remember, Jesus is their rabbi, He is their master, He is their

teacher. Do you ever have like parents?

We try to do this far too often, like teachable moments with our

kids. I'm going to sit down.

I'm going to use this as a teachable moment, and it doesn't

always go the way we thought. Jesus is calling faith out of

them because of what they've just experienced together.

And so I don't think the implication here, I don't think

what Jesus wants is for the disciples to feel guilt and

shame. I don't think Jesus means or

intends for for them to feel like, oh man, we really messed

that one up. Better try harder next time.

Jesus has not asked this question to the disciples at

this point in the Gospel of Luke.

This is the first time that Jesus asks them, where is your

faith? It's not like he's asked over

and over again and they've boldly declared our faith is in

you, Jesus. This is the very first time.

And so he is inviting them into deeper faith.

He's inviting them to place their faith, their trust in who

he is, not in their own ability, not in their experience, not in

the storm, not in what's going on around them.

This is an invitation into deeper faith, into growing

faith, and into more trust for the first time.

And it's really unique because the disciples have seen the

miracles, they've witnessed it from a distance, they've seen

Jesus do the thing. And other people have always

benefited, right? When Jesus heals, they've been

able to watch how he has healed. And when Jesus casts out,

they've been able to watch how lives have been restored.

And they've even gotten to kind of participate in things here

and there. But for their most of their

journey, they've seen other people receive what Jesus has to

offer. And now, for the first time,

they receive themselves. They experience it themselves.

The power that Jesus has over life and death, over the seas,

over the storms, over spirits. They receive the benefit of

Jesus power over the world and as they receive it, as they

experience it, as they are delivered, they're invited into

greater faith. They're invited to continue to

place their trust in Jesus. It's as if Jesus has said to

them, you've seen what I do and you have received what I do.

Now will you put your trust in me?

Where will you place your trust? And then fear?

Is their response in fear and amazement?

They asked one another, Who is this?

He commands even the winds and the waters, and they obey him.

They actually do what he says. This fear is a different kind of

fear. Now.

The disciples seem to have their fear shifted, reoriented,

directed differently. Now they're filled with fear at

Jesus's power over the storm, even after it was calmed, maybe

even especially after it was calmed.

And so I do think that fear, in one sense, is the antithesis of

faith. And what does Scripture point us

toward in regards to fear? There are lines that read like

perfect love casts out fear. So we do believe that Jesus is

going to push against and cast out fear in life.

But in another sense, there is, I believe, a different kind of

fear that allows us to experience, in its rightful

place, fuller faith. Fred Craddock, who is a preacher

and wrote a commentary on Luke, puts it this way.

He said is sheer sentimentalism that supposes that being in the

presence of Jesus is total comfort.

It's not all warm and fuzzy. That's the Grant translation,

not the I Wrote a Book translation.

See this line. I believe can also be read this

way having been afraid, and there's reasons why, and if

you're curious about it we can go through it afterwards.

This word is actually rightfully translated.

Having been afraid, having been afraid, they wondered.

They marvelled together at one another saying, Who is this?

The Gospel of Luke wants us rushing to that question.

That question is going to be posed.

Jesus is going to pose it to his disciples.

Who do people say that I am? Who do you say that I am?

We are working toward an answer to this question in the Gospel

of Luke, and Jesus is kind of steering us there, and Luke is

steering us there. But Jesus wants the disciples to

answer who he is and whether or not they will put their trust in

Him. Having been afraid of the storm,

but afraid of the storm no longer, their amazement and

their fear turn to Jesus. Because I think the disciples

recognize that Jesus has power over the very thing that that

they thought nobody was supposed to have power over.

Like if there's one place, if there's one thing, if there's

one reality, nobody has power over the seas and the winds and

the storms. No human.

And yet Jesus demonstrates power.

They say, who is this? He commands even the wind and

the water, and they obey him. It's not just that Jesus claims

to have power over the wind and the waves.

He has shown it. He's demonstrated that the one

thing that was outside of everybody's control, universally

agreed upon, is under his control.

Proverbs 9 verse 10 says that the fear of the Lord is the

Proverbs 9:10

beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the Holy One leads

to understanding. I think for those of us who

wrestle out our own faith and trust in Jesus and desire to put

our faith and trust in Jesus, one of the questions that we

need to reckon with and wrestle with is do we want Jesus only

when it is comfortable and when it is peaceful and when it is

calm and cool and collected serenity?

Or are we willing to reckon also with His power, His power over

the storms? Like is it Jesus who we want

that is fuzzy cozy teddy bear like comfort me when I need it?

Or is he? Do we allow him to be the one

with power over the chaos and who brings order and peace to

the storms? Are we willing to enter into

this same reality with fear and amazement and wrestle out this

question? Who is this Jesus that even has

power over the storms? Psalm 46.

It's maybe one of the most quoted verses in Scripture.

And in in verse 10, it reads like this.

He says, be still and know that I am God.

I will be exalted among the nations.

I will be exalted in the earth. And so usually when we memorize

Psalm 46, that's the line, that's the verse we like that

verse, that verse feels good. I'm all for the beast still and

know that I am God. Yes, Amen to that.

But I'm curious if you've ever read back and seen what comes

first, because the lines that lead up to that immediately read

like this. Come and see what the Lord has

done, the desolations He has brought on the earth.

He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth.

He breaks the bow and shatters the spear.

He burns the Shields with fire. It's not calm, cool, and

collected. It's not cozy and it is not

comfortable, but it is powerful. And then immediately after that

he burns the Shields with fire. He says, be still and know that

I am God. I will be exalted among the

nations. I will be exalted among the

earth. It's language of rebuke.

It's language that puts the world into its right place, that

orders it properly, you and I included.

We need to be ordered properly. The command to be still can only

follow on the wake of God's power and God's authority in the

world to drive out the things of death.

And when those things are driven out, then he says Be still

commands it and know that I am God.

There's a scene in Narnia and somebody told me I'd lose my

like, pastor card if I didn't bring up this story.

And so maybe you've heard this before, and that's OK, but

there's a scene in Narnia where Mr. Beaver is describing Aslin.

So Aslin is a lion and these children have come into Narnia

and Mr. Beaver who is a Beaver is describing what Azelin is

like. Azelin is this all powerful

creature within Narnia universe, thank God.

Metaphorically, and this is the line says Azelin is a lion, the

lion, the great lion. Oh, said Susan.

I thought he was a man. Is he quite safe?

I shall rather feel nervous about meeting a lion safe, said

Mr. Beaver, who said anything about Safe.

Corsi isn't safe, but he is good.

He's the King, see? We need that Jesus.

We need that Psalm 46 burns the Shields with fire.

We need the Jesus who breaks the bow and shatters the spear and

burns the shield with fire. We need the Jesus who rebukes

the demons and heals the sick and raises the dead.

We need the Jesus who is not safe and comfortable and cozy

and make you feel good about every little thing about your

life. And we do need the Jesus who is

good, but who rebukes and who puts things into their proper

place. But that Jesus requires complete

and utter, total trust and full obedience.

And so the question is the same to you as it is to the

disciples. Where is your faith?

In whom do you place your trust? Let me pray, God thanks for your

love and for your grace things that you are one who leads well.

I thank you that you are one who rebukes.

Thank you that you are one who orders the world, who cause and

causes there to be order where there was chaos.

I say you are one who speaks the deepest things that are true

about the world and about each of us.

And so, God, I do pray that we would, each one of us wrestle

with this question. Where do we place our trust?

In whom do we trust? Yeah, I pray that as we turn to

the world, we would long for and pray for the Jesus who is King,

the Jesus who does break the bow and shatter the spear and burn

the Shields with fire. Because yeah, we like we look at

the world and we pray. Come, Lord Jesus, and yeah, we

know that that begins with us and it begins in here, in in our

hearts and in our minds and together as a church.

And so, yeah, would you make us ones who long for justice and

who pray for justice and then who work for justice?

Would you make us peacemakers? Yeah.

Would you be one who draws close and who puts us in our place,

and then from that place call us and remind us whose we are good

things that were yours. We love you and as we continue

to worship Lord Jesus, we pray. Reveal yourself to be one who is

good and one who is close. And we pray in the strong name

of Jesus. Oh man.