Surviving the storm

Talofa lava,
 
Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ.
 
Recent days (and nights) have been quite wet with heavy rain testing the strength of our roofs. Last Sunday evening, StAND Youth opened their youth session with a look at the very familiar story of “Jesus Calms a Storm” (Luke 8:22-25). We looked at how our lives consist of sailing our boats through numerous storms. Rain and “getting wet” is often seen as a nuisance: when it rains, we run for cover – we don’t see any good in it. However, the youth raised some very good discussion about how significant water is for the process of growth. Plants and trees welcome the rain – as I am sure those in drought affected countries would.
 
When God sends heavy rain and storms into our lives we can either see it as another reason to run and hide for cover – or we can see it as a way of God growing us through these experiences. Jesus did the same with the disciples who were on the boat that day: “Where is your faith?”
 
When life gets a little messy and you feel nothing is going right, or when life hits you with something unbearable, know that God is growing you through these experiences. GROW on.
 
Blessings,
Rev. Gary Mauga