When times are good and the seas are calm, you would think it would be the perfect time to count our blessings and thank God for each and every one of them, then take some additional time to praise Him for all He is and all that He has done. Sadly, during those peaceful times we often take His blessings for granted instead. It isn’t until the storm begins to pick up again and we find ourselves in peril that we turn to Him once again for survival.
In the midst of the storm we are naturally gripped by fear and doubt. We are concentrating so much on our immediate needs that we urgently call on God for help instead of taking time to thank and praise Him. We read that the disciples had sailed without Jesus because He wanted some time alone to pray after learning of the death of John the Baptist. In the middle of the night they found themselves in a terrible storm at sea. About 3am, Jesus appeared to them walking on the choppy water. Once they realized it was Jesus, Peter asked Jesus if he could walk out to Him on the water and Jesus told him to come. Peter stepped out of the boat by faith but soon took his eyes off of Jesus to look around at the raging storm then fear overtook his faith and he began to sink. Jesus reached out to Peter and they both climbed into the boat as the storm immediately subsided.(Matthew 14:24-33) If we want to praise God, whatever our circumstances, we must keep our focus on Him instead of the pleasures or perils that surround us.
I have learned many valuable lessons in my life from great men and women of God whom I have never had the privilege to meet. Through their writings I have been blessed by not only their wisdom and faith but by their example. Horacio Spafford is the supreme example of praising God in the storm. The magnificent song of praise, “It is well with my soul” that he wrote while mourning the loss of his family at sea has blessed millions. I am always drawn to this verse of his song:
My sin—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!—
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!