Hey, so a couple of weeks ago or actually not a couple weeks ago this week. We sat down as a family for a meal now. There's there's the first Christmas miracle right? Like we we did it. We sat down as a family for a meal and my wife asked us this question.

She just said hey, what are you hoping for for the holidays? And I thought that was such an interesting question because like we've all got a list and we all know what we've got to do and we've all got things we're trying to do over these next three weeks three weeks from today. But her question was so much deeper. She was reminding us right that the holidays represent so much like when we celebrate Christmas, there's a real hope that comes with the holidays. I mean Jesus has come.

This is the solution we've been looking for this gives us joy. The almighty God has seen us and he sent his son for us and if we're not careful, we'll miss out and Christmas will get here. And maybe we've missed what we're hoping for what she was looking for is. Hey, are we hoping for healing? Are we hoping for Grace?

Are we hoping to see a relationship mended are we hoping to see a child come back and and really us begin to have a relationship with him and encourage him. What are you hoping for for the holidays? Because this is this is more than just another day on the calendar. This is the Jesus has come now. One of the things we want to do.

I love this series is we're just trying to be honest with you the weary in the waiting like it's much joy in as much hope and this healing that the holidays bring and also brings really some storms. And so we're gonna kind of try to balance the tension. I just want to be real up front. We that we're gonna celebrate it's coming hang with us when we make it to December 17th and 18th. Our vision for that night is that we might be families that pray together and laugh together.

Is that okay we want to do both. So listen, come on that Saturday night. Come join us at any of our campuses that's gonna be a fun night. And then Christmas Eve. We you know, we talked as a House Church this week about different traditions.

We do to keep Jesus to keep the meaning for the holidays kind of in the front of us and and right here with and one of the families just say listen, what we do is we just make it a point to be at Christmas Eve Adventure. Like she's just a part of our Rhythm. It's what we do to keep us kind of grounded. And so I know you've got a lot going on on that weekend. I know that day right Christmas Eve is so busy, but come join us at Christmas Adventure, okay.

All right. Well, listen, let's let's get to the message and I'm in the first thing I want to do for the messages. I want you to go back to 2017. And if you'll remember in 2017 men, we got hammered by tornado. I remember it really clearly.

In fact at Lincoln Road. I see a family right over here that went through the storm had a ton of damage. I remember being at the bonds house and just seeing the chaos, but one of the things that happened in the storm if you'll remember if you were watching and you were like me you're trying to decide, you know, we're gonna bring our kids down. Are we gonna all get in the cloud? You know, we're gonna kind of get away from the windows.

What are we gonna do and we're watching WDAM. And Patrick the weatherman was doing our be doing his best to kind of communicate the storms close, but he lost volume y'all remember that and so he came up with a great solution. Look look. Do you remember this is what he did here where he wrote. He wrote us a note.

So here's here's the note this morning. You ready? The holiday storms are on the ground and they're coming. I don't want you to be surprised. This reality that all of a sudden this Cosmic weed eater is going to come down and just begin to take tops off.

The trees is what it feels like when we get hit by a storm all of a sudden you have this oak tree that's been the center of your family. It's been this it's been this thing you could always count on, you know, you can hang the swing you could build the tree and it's an anchor for your family and the storms can come and uproot that sucker and turn it all the way over. Storm sneak up on us. I mean, it's like a beautiful, you know, you just enjoying life and then all of a sudden here comes the storm in your houses and shambles. Storms right or a metaphor for us our life feels that way sometimes and in the midst of the storms you and I ask the same questions when we're standing there and everything around Us beside us in our neighborhoods is just devastated.

We're asking God this where are you in the midst of the storm? I've asked it. You've asked it. And what I'm going to show you today is that the disciples asked the same question. And you're going to see really clearly that yes, Jesus hears you in your storm.

And yes, he is present in your storm now to get you there. I'm gonna look at two different two different accounts of the same storm. And I love this about the gospels, right? You've got four gospels Matthew Mark Luke and John and all of them are four different perspectives. I mean when I tell the story of the tornado in 2017, it's one way when this family that went through the storm tells it another way.

It's the same storm but they're gonna capture some different details that I'm gonna capture. It's called the harmony of the gospels. And so today I'm going to look at two different accounts of the same storm, but join me, we're going to start in Mark 4. And we're gonna be in verse 35. Here we go.

That day when evening came he this is Jesus said to the disciples, let us go over to the other side. Now that's going to be really important at the end of the message. I'm going to come back to that verse. Leaving the crowd behind they took him along just as he was in the boat. There were also other boats with him and then a furious storm came up in the waves broke over the boat so that it was nearly swamped.

Well, Jesus was in the stern and he was sleeping on a cushion. I loved the details just interesting the disciples woke him and they said to him teacher don't you care if we drown man? I love the drama. Okay, but now that's Mark's account. Now, I'm gonna get over here to Matthew's account the same storm and he picks up with Jesus's response to the storm.

Okay. So here we go. So now we're in Matthew 8 gonna be in verse 36. He replied Jesus replied you of little faith. Why are you so afraid?

Then he got up and he rebuked the winds and the waves and it was completely calm. The men were amazed. They said what kind of man is this even the winds and the waves obey him? Now here's what I'm gonna do to get it started. I'm gonna do my best.

To to give you a Patrick at WDAM impersonation, okay. I feel like I'm back in school like you can hear the Sharpie. Okay here is here's the forecast. Here's the forecast. Today, I'm meeting with a couple that's engaged.

Here's what I'm gonna tell them hundred percent chance of storms coming in your marriage. Last week I did baby celebration where we dedicated these beautiful babies. And here's what I told those parents 100. I'm coming your way. Beautiful child this week after chance to talk to a family at the Hunt Club and their grandparents.

Now, here's what they said. There's still storms in my life. I thought it got easier with adult kids. Thanks for the good news, right 100% chance of storms in every single season of life we face. Here's my goal.

Because here's what I've learned after 15 years of marriage if I show up if you show up at my house for lunch today unannounced. It's a storm. If I'll tell Katie, I'm going to invite some people over to the house for a meal. It's gonna be such a better experience. I want you to know for certain.

I don't want you to be surprised when You Face storms. See I thought it's so interesting to watch the disciples. Did you see how the disciples were shocked? And I think one reason the disciples were shocked is because they were the disciples. It was like hey wait Jesus.

I thought maybe because I was following you that I wouldn't gonna have to face any storms. I mean, right like I've already left my job. I've left my family. I've given it all up for you. But now we are about to drown we what you need to see is like listen, no matter no matter how long you've been following Jesus no matter how good things seem to be no matter what you're doing.

This world is broken. We can count on Storms. Jesus said this way in the Book of John. I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. That's what we celebrate the holidays right in him.

We can find peace verse continues though in this world. You will have trouble take heart. I've overcome the world James 1 count it all joy. When You Face trials. Here's the promise the promises that you and I are going to face storms.

So I want to give you some things to help you in the Miss the storm. First one is this your perspective in storms is really Limited. You get this you've been driving through the storm and you just can't you know, you just can't see. I remember when when we had our first child and you guys know this if you if you've had children. When you have your first kid, you just know nothing absolutely nothing and Mac was do his due date was in July, but we went for you know an appointment in June to make sure everything was good and and our doctor said no, actually you need to come back tonight at 6:30.

We're gonna have this, baby. And we said no the babies do in July. You're I'm sorry, not us. And she said no your wife's ankles are this big you need to come back? And so we came back and we begin the problem.

We're here when next thing, you know 24 hours. We were still in labor and then we were scared. We'd never had kids before we invite all our family to come they were in the waiting room everything that what in the world was going on around us, right? We thought the storm we felt the wind we felt the rain we felt the uncertainty, but the craziest thing happened in the midst of that storm. I begin to watch and look at the face of our nurse River Oaks Hospital in Flowood.

Can't say something. She stayed so calm in that storm. I begin to look at the face of our doctor Dr. Missy McMahon. She was amazing.

It was almost as if this nurse and this doctor had seen this before their perspective was different. See in that moment when the storm hits the disciples are freaking out yet. Jesus is sleeping. How could he be sleeping in the middle of the storm? Listen, he was sleeping in the middle of the storm because his perspective was different.

He was listen, he was tired. Jesus was tired because he cares about you and me. But he was sleeping not just because he was tired. He was sleeping because he had a different perspective. He knew that listen man.

I can come in and speak to this storm and everything's gonna change his perspective was different. How could Jesus be asleep? How could he be asleep in my storm? Here? I am I'm sinking in the storm yet.

Jesus is sleeping. And what I'm here to tell you is that Jesus responds to the storm. Now what part of the storm did he respond to? The storm when you go back to the meaning of that word go to the original language. It could be translated the quake.

It was an earthquake of a storm. I mean, this was a major storm and it's the rain fell in the wind blew and he's down there on his cushion asleep. That doesn't wake him. But what was the thing that woke him? The crime of the disciples and that wild The storm didn't move him to action the crowd you and me when we cry out to Jesus.

That's what moves him to action when you face the storm. You're going to your perspective is limited. But in that moment when you cry out to Jesus, he hears you. I love what he says. So he wakes up right he finally has moved to action and he comes into the moment and he doesn't speak.

He doesn't speak to the storm first. He speaks to the disciples. Now when he does speak to the storm, this is a pretty cool detail nine different times. Jesus does a miracle in nature? Pretty powerful like it.

For some reason. We're the only ones that think it's optional to respond to Jesus. Nature responds beautifully, it's just amazing Miracles his power. But when he does speak he says to the disciples he says hey, look where is your faith? And I thought that's such a great question because here these men are think about all the things that they had.

No doubt, you got a group of men on a lake in a boat. They had fishing gear. They had food. Maybe maybe not. They had life jackets, right?

It's optional. They had everything they needed for the moment. But the thing they forgot was their faith. Think about it for you when the storm comes what what comes naturally? Panic you don't have to look for it.

It just it's just there. Worry, some of you are so good at that you bring so much worry. Fear Man, it's just it's just naturally there. Right, what about these statements when the storm comes how many of you go to this? What if Oh, man, we could play that game for days.

What if He says listen when these storms begin to hit your life and they hit my life. One of the thing that's not automatic is your faith. Now I love that about our air conditioning and our Heat. They're automatic. I mean when it begins to cool down all of a sudden that heat just boom it's in and what happens the whole room begins to change it adjusts because that heat came in and it just recognized the temperature your faith doesn't work like that when the storm comes it's not just gonna kick in and change everything.

It's something that has to be deliberate faith is a deliberate action. It's a step that you and I take Faith is applying what you know about Jesus. To your life her Bob Goff talked this week at the ADP. And Bob said this he quoted Hebrews one. He said faith is being sure of what we hope for in certain of what we do not see.

Man, listen, I love the song we sing a lot here. It's called same God. It says listen you and I worship the same God that fed the five thousand you and I worship the same God that healed the sick and the lame you not worship the same God that conquered death, but when we Face storms it's as if we know it up here about this God, but we don't apply it in the midst of our storm. It's like it just hasn't kicked in. And Jesus says listen, when those storms hit don't forget.

Listen, don't forget to begin to apply those things because storms allow us to see where maybe our faith is leaking. Gosh, that's true. And here's what's so powerful about it. I met with a guy this week. That was was looking going through some job changes and all of a sudden he found himself unemployed wife and two kids.

He said man, it's it all the sudden. This is become personal. Storms when you're walking through the divorce storms when you're walking through the job change when you're walking through the hospital room of the diagnosis it gets real personal. The disciples were there for everybody else's storm. They saw Jesus do things that were amazing.

They were first-hand Witnesses. They saw the feeding of the 5,000. They saw him raise Dead Men Back to Life. They experienced every bit of it. But when the storm hit their life, it was what it was different.

It was different. Sometimes we need that because when we walk through that storm and it becomes personal we see and understand something about God that we never knew. Do you see how they ended the text? They said? Well, who is this man?

They've been with him for all these they've been with him for these years. They've been following they knew he was but now they knew something different about Jesus that they'd never experienced in it took a storm. To show them in their life where they might have been leaking faith. And then to reveal to them a different side of Jesus that they never had an understood. They never knew.

So real quick some truth about storms a hundred percent chance. We're gonna walk through storms. Our perspective in the midst of the storm. Remember man, when we had that baby, we didn't know the doctor hold different perspective. Our perspective is limited remember in the midst of storms that faith will go to sleep.

Our faith can go to sleep. It doesn't just automatically turn on finally in the midst of storms man storms reveal where we may be leaking. Now here's what I want to do. I want to transition just for a minute in this but I want to be really careful. I've been I've been praying about this moment.

Because one of the weird things about teaching is we want to draw common ground and we've got Common Ground who hasn't faced a storm. We who doesn't agree that your perspective is limited, but then the next part of a message is we turn to some application but one one of the things that sensitive to me in this is that the level of your storms and my storms they're different and if you feel like I'm giving you two or three things right now that are gonna solve your storm. You've already done it. You would have already done it or you would just do it. It's understand that it's more complicated a sat with a family this week that lost their 25 year old daughter.

I mean I'm watching you. I see your faces. I know your storms are complicated. So here's what I'm gonna do. I'm not gonna preach the end of this message like hey do this in your storm will go away.

I'm gonna preach the end of this message. Just telling you what's helped me in my storms. I love what chip Henderson says at Pine Lake. He says when he defines Ministry says it's just one blind beggar telling another blind beggar where he found some food. So here's where I found some hope when I face storms.

The first one is this Craig you've got to stay anchored to God's presence. I've got to stay anchored to God's presence. Here's what I know. I have enough Faith to believe that God's gonna move the storm. I can do that.

Here's where I struggle. I need to have enough Faith to know that even if God doesn't move the storm he can use the storm. Really different that's an area where God's challenging me. It's a part of my journey to say. Yes, Hey listen, he's gonna move that storm.

He's gonna release that in one day. I have the faith to believe that's going to happen, but I'm learning to have the faith to believe that even if he doesn't He's still at work in the midst of the storm. It's hard for me Romans. 12:2 says do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world. I love this verse but be renewed.

And so I want to renew your faith. Don't conform me long to the patterns of this world. I don't know what this storm is. I don't know where this is coming from God. Do you hear me?

That's the patterns of the world. My prayers aren't getting through the ruins. Why would this happen to me? But instead I'm going to renew your faith. Does God really care?

Yes. Listen, he left heaven to come to Earth to calm your storm. Does he really care? He mean you mean the cross to Christ? I mean right like he gave up his life.

He was a suffering servant for you. And for me, yes, of course, he cares does he really hear me? Yes, he hears you what woke the what won't Jesus in the midst of that storm. It was the Cry of the disciples. So, yes, he hears you let me renew your mind and then let me help you begin to be transformed by.

Hope he is with you. Even in the midst of the storm the second thing I try to remind myself Craig stay anchored to God's promise. Now here's the part. I was going to tell you I was going to come back to because this really rocked me a little bit. This whole thing about the storm.

I mean something people know this story where Jesus calm the storm. All the drama all the bailing of water all the crying after Jesus we're gonna drowned. Listen to what Jesus says at the very first of this text you're at him. That day when the evening came he said to his disciples. Let us go over to the other side.

All that drama and Jesus Promised at the very first of this text to get them to the other side. All that fear all that panic all those reactions but God's word said that the very first thing Jesus told those guys. Hey, we're going to make it to the other side. I want you to lean in I need to give you an anchor to throw down when that storm hits your life. The first one is God's presence.

The second one is his promise. He's telling the disciples right there. We're gonna make it to the other side. One of the things one of the things I love to do is I love to grill. And one what happens to me, there's times and some of you are going to disagree with this but believe it or not.

There are times that a state can be too raw. I mean it doesn't need to be moving. And I'll take the steak off the grill and bring it in and what do you do when you when you're trying to figure out if it's done or not, you cut it. Because cutting reveals kind of like a storm. But you have to you have to cut into a little bit so you can see what's on the inside of the stake.

And then and then you got to make the decision what needs to happen. Is it fully done? Is this steak ready to eat or where does it need to go if it's not ready yet? Back on the Fire I don't want to go back on the fire. But if you go back on the fire spend a little more time there it's kind of like James says in chapter one, then you're faith will be mature and complete.

But you gotta go back on the fire and you keep that steak on the fire a little bit longer. Then you take it back off the fire. Then it's prepared. Then it's ready. I mean, then it is mature and it is complete and it's amazing.

But you know this too you don't want you don't want to cut the steak yet. You want to let it just sit for a little bit. Because man, there's still something going on in there still working. And all of a sudden you get this steak that's ready. But it took the fire to prepare the steak you had to give it some time.

So here's how I'm going to end today because this is so powerful. I love this part of this message is when you look at the disciples you see a picture and I see a picture of really if we're really quite honest of just just okay Faith. I mean, come on those guys panicked. Right now that should encourage us because Jesus still stepped in it wasn't the quality of their faith that woke him. It was just their cries.

So you need to you need to get that that's like base level because I know you you're going yeah, of course Jesus stepped in for the disciples. This was the disciples. But what about me? I haven't been the best father. I haven't been the best husband.

I could have been a better wife. Well, it wasn't the quality of their faith. It was just that they cried out we can do that. But either way this is a picture of just okay Faith. What does great faith even look like Like if we want to be people of faith.

But give me the picture give me something to shoot for I'm gonna take you back to the Old Testament and Daniel chapter 3 you remember this story I mentioned the story at the end of the night the 9:30 time and somebody came up to me said I've never heard that story. Shadrach Meshach and Abednego you remember and here is the King King Nebuchadnezzar and he's telling them here's the decree. Here's what all are you gonna do everybody that's listening to me. You're gonna bow down to me and Shadrach me Shack in a Bendigo. Give us a picture of great faith, and I want you to see what they did Shadrach me Shack and I've been to go reply to the king.

Oh Nebuchadnezzar. We don't we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. Well, there's Faith right there. I mean, we don't even need to defend ourselves before you well. I don't know you better Bow Down.

If we are thrown into the Blazing furnace the God that we serve is able to save us from it. And he will rescue us from your hand O King. Well, that's that's pretty great faith in God's power. Okay, but but again, I kind of connect with that. I feel like I can step into that moment.

It's the next line to get me Daniel 318 but even if he does not that's the part I struggle with. But even if he does not owe King, we want you to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold that you have set up. So he starts out with God's power. We want you to know. Okay, he can save us and I feel like I'm there but then it's his wisdom and his timing that they say they trust too.

That's the part I struggle with. But even if he doesn't O King We're still not gonna bow down. So Nebuchadnezzar reacts like any any king would in that moment. His ego has been hurt. So we says flame it up boys four times.

It's normal heat put them in some ropes chunk them in the furnace. They open the door to chunk them in there. The guys that chunk them in there die now see what happens to these three guys these three guys now, this is important not these three superheroes. Not these three gods. These three men just like you and me.

Here's how they replied then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement. And he asks his advisors weren't there three men that we tied up and we threw into the fire. His advisors were plot. Well, certainly. Oh King.

Well, then nebby King. Nebbie says, look, I see four men walking around in the fire. They're Unbound. They're unharmed and the fourth one looks like the son of God So here's the whole message. Whether you just have a little bit of Faith like the disciples God is present with you in the storm or whether you have great faith like Shadrach Meshach and have been go in.

The fire God is present with you in the fire. It's not the absence of trouble. It's the presence of God in our life that helps us in the storm. Okay. Let's pray together.

God I thank you so much. That you are with me when I face the storms. God I just know that there's there's people listening. And there's people wondering do you hear them God are you with them? And I thank you that we can look to Scripture and we can see that you are with us.

And you do hear us that God. It's our cries that you respond to. And God, I'm learning to accept sometimes. It's not a response of moving the storm. Instead.

It's just a response of joining me in the fire. And so God just allows us to sense you and to see you God allow us to be people that really have great faith. But help us here today, so clearly that it's it's not the quality of our faith. It's not even the substance of our life. It's the goodness of God.

It's the grace of God. That shows up. In the middle of the storm and in the middle of the fire. So God help me not see the storm. But help me see my savior who's with me.

It's in your name. We pray. Amen.