Don’t you hate it when you are leading a Bible study on a particular topic and then the Lord convicts you through His Spirit that you are struggling with said topic?
What? Just me?
Every Tuesday night this summer, my home has been filled with ladies of all ages as we have studied the life of Noah together (more on that later in the summer). We are studying Nicki Koziarz’s book Flooded. The particular topic of the study is doubt, and we have all wrestled with our doubts and how and when they pop up in our lives. It has been amazing. As the leader, I have tried to be honest about my doubts and lack of trust in God in certain areas of my life. I have shared those on a weekly basis. But in my day to day life, I thought I was doing pretty good with leaning on Jesus.
Until I started my quiet time one morning this week.
Keep in mind, before I lead anyone else through a particular Bible study, I usually have already done it myself. This is the case for the study this summer. I read it in the spring. As usually happens, going back through it has brought out brand new things that I did not notice before.
Before I had even opened my Bible that day, I had messaged my Sunday school class and asked them to please pray for my minivan to be fixed and returned to us. Yes, Bougie the van is still in the shop after being wrecked over a month ago. Even though I only had her for two weeks, she had already changed life for the better for me, and I need her back. And Gram needs her car back. So I had asked my girls to please pray for the van to come home. Stewart and I had talked the night before about this very topic. Vacation is near, and time is running short. We really need our vehicle back.
Then I started reading my Bible study book. Nicki directed us to Genesis 7:17-24, which is the major section pertaining to the flood. As I read, one word jumped out at me. It was in verse 18: “The water surged and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water.” (Italics added)
Floated. Not struggled against the waves, as we see the apostles do when they encounter storms in the gospels. The ark floated. One translation went as far as to say it “gently floated.”
Was I “gently floating” through this situation or was I struggling against the rising waters? One of the “decisions” we are led to make in our Bible study is to rise above the doubt. I wasn’t rising above it. I wasn’t floating. I was trying to take over. And oh by the way, I am not in charge.
And then the author lead us to Psalm 29:10:
“The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned, King forever.”
Enthroned. Merriam-Webster defines that as “to assign supreme virtue or value to or exalt.”[1] Am I enthroned over anything? Not so much. The Lord is COMMA KING FOREVER. That got me. I was done worrying over something that I do not have any power over. Only He does. It’s time for me to just float.
Because think about it. When you float in water, you just let go. You’re not trying to steer yourself. You’re not flailing against the currents. You are not fighting. You are just floating. Noah did not have a steering mechanism on the ark. He and his family just had to float and trust that the Lord, who was enthroned over the flood, knew what He was doing. We know the end of that story. God did, and humanity was saved.
Maybe it’s time for you to just float. Let go. Let God steer. And stop doubting. He is King forever.
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