I don’t know much about your life. But then again, I do. You and I both are struggling to trust God for something that feels urgent. And often, we find ourselves feeling swamped. Stuck in a raging storm.
In this episode of Live the Bible, Jesus shows us what to do in the storm— how to find a calm we never knew existed.
![How to Find a Calm in Your Storm [Podcast]](https://waynestiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/How-to-Find-a-Calm-in-Your-Storm-Podcast.jpg)
I recently heard that God is the God of hard left turns. So many of us began life headed one direction and ended up in a place we never thought we would. I bet that happened to you, didn’t it? Me too. And to the apostle Peter.
(Photo: El-Araj, one possible place of Peter’s hometown. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
For Peter, it was a long, long way from Bethsaida to Rome—from his birth to his death. It’s the same in the changing courses of our lives.
So many of us grew up in certain towns or earned degrees for a particular field, but we find the Lord has led us in a completely different direction.
I went to college to study music theory and classical guitar. (Exciting, I know.) But nowhere in my wildest dreams could I have imagined today my profession would have me leading real tours and virtual video tours to the Holy Land. That seems to have little to do with music theory and guitar, you know?
Why does God lead us with hard lefts?
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Let’s be honest, sometimes it seems like the wheels are coming off—both in the world and in our lives. What is God doing?
In this episode of Live the Bible, Jesus will tell us what God is doing when nothing is happening. Frankly, it’s great to know that if God plants potatoes, then potatoes will grow? (I explain that more in the podcast.)
God’s plan hasn’t skipped a beat in the world or in our lives.
![What God is Doing When Nothing is Happening [Podcast]](https://waynestiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/What-God-is-Doing-When-Nothing-is-Happening-Podcast.jpg)
It’s hard feeling embarrassed about where you grew up. Maybe your family had problems. Perhaps your hometown or church seemed nothing special. You’re not alone. Three of Jesus’ disciples felt that way too.
(Photo: Plain of Bethsaida. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
The slopes near the site of Bethsaida offer some of the most beautiful scenery in the Galilee. In the spring, wildflowers burst open to drink in the sun, and the surrounding meadows paint the whole area a bright green. From certain vantage points, I have looked at the Sea of Galilee from Bethsaida and observed no modern distractions.
Most modern maps, signs, and tourists point to the site of et-Tell as biblical Bethsaida. If so, then this was the place in which Jesus performed miracles.
Peter, Andrew, and Philip had this as their hometown. A hometown that rejected Jesus. But God would still use the boyhood home in the lives these men.
God can use your lousy hometown too.
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With God, your life can make an amazing difference. That’s right, your life. In this episode of Live the Bible, Jesus shows us that no matter where you are or what you’ve done, you can always come to God and start fresh—and bear fruit for Him.
Your life can matter, and God shows you how.
Sometimes it seems God gets in the way of us doing the very things He’s commanded. The most frustrating part of these moments isn’t our lack of success. It’s our confusion. Why does God close the door on His will?
(Photo: Troas, where Paul, Silas, and Timothy visited. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
These roadblocks in God’s guiding us show up in various ways.
These closed doors can confuse our spiritual lives by seeming to contradict the will of God. Doesn’t the Lord want relationships to mend, people to change, ministry to occur, and provision for daily needs?
Thankfully, the Bible’s geography offers us some clarity.
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Sometimes those closest to us don’t understand us. Or worse, they don’t accept us at all. Jesus’ gracious way of responding with truth shows us how God would have us respond. He also helps redirect our hopes to a place that ultimately never fails us.
In this episode of Live the Bible, Jesus models what to do when we’re misunderstood—and even rejected—by the very ones we’d hoped would accept us.
The question Jesus asked in the Capernaum synagogue still rattles around in our minds. In fact, whether or not we realize it, we deal with His question most days of our lives.
(Photo: Capernaum Synagogue. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
You do not want to go away also, do you? (John 6:67)
Jesus’ question had an edge of disappointment. He had just spoken with some of his followers, called “disciples,” though not the twelve apostles. Jesus spoke words that drew a line in the Galilean dirt, separating his followers into two groups.
Jesus had just uttered the unthinkable. How would you respond to what He said?
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Have you ever wondered why God isn’t working in your life as He works in other lives? It’s a common question, but the reality may be far more different than you realize.
In this episode of Live the Bible, we’re going to be talking about how God uses whom He chooses. Without exception. In fact, God using you has less to do with your giftedness than it does with your willingness.
What God teaches us in one area of life we can easily miss in another area. So God has to repeat Himself. But sometimes the connection isn’t so easy for us to make.
(Photo: Waves crash ashore on the Sea of Galilee. Courtesy of the Pictorial Library of Bible Lands)
Jesus performed more miracles in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee than any other place in His ministry. Standing on its shores, one can easily see across the shallow lake. The hills to the east and west tower above the water. As cool air from these heights rushes down the slopes into the lake’s warmer basin, winds can whip up the surface of the water to deadly proportions.
A small craft, such as the one Matthew reported the disciples clung to during a stormy night, could find itself foundering in an instant.
In one day, Christ taught His disciples a simple truth we should never forget.
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