Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.

It has often been said that you are either in a storm, coming out of a storm, or are headed for a storm. No doubt, this life is full of storms. Don't get me wrong, it is not all gloom and doom, which we will get to in a moment, but, we all know that this life can be very tumultuous and stormy.

A lot of times, it hardly seems that we can get past one thing before another arises. We will fight and struggle to make through something, only to have something else crop up before we can catch a breath. BUT, we also know, as GOD'S children, that we have and advocate - the LORD JESUS.

Today's word is a very familiar passage that reminds me that JESUS is on my side and that He has things under control: Matthew 14:27, NIV, reads, "But JESUS immediately said to them: 'Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.'"

The disciples found themselves in the midst of a violent and terrible storm; they were being battered and buffeted on all sides. I am sure they felt that this might be their demise. Don't lose sight of the fact that there were seasoned fishermen in this group, and, they, too, were afraid that this might be the end. HOWEVER, they look out and see someone walking towards them, on the water, in the middle of this terrible storm. As I heard a preacher say years ago, "The waves that were over their head were under His feet."

We can be confident that in the midst of our storms, we have the same SAVIOR, the same RESCUER, the same loving, sensitive, and all-knowing GOD that will come to us when we need Him, even walking through the very middle of the worst storm of our lives. We are all going to have storms to weather. We are all going to have things to go through. We are all going to have moments that will push us to our very limits. BUT, as GOD'S children, we know we have a SAVIOR, Who in the midst of it all will say, "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."