Cause & Effect

Mark 4:35-41
New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Calms the Storm

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

This portion of scripture is one of my favorites because there is tons that we can take and apply to our lives. All the way from Jesus' ability to sleep in a great storm, to the disciples actually questioning His love for them...so much great stuff. But today I wanted to share a thought that I apparently jotted down years ago. I recently found a binder full of notes I'd written; some all the way from when I was probably 18 years old! Boy I was a dork. With my overall jeans and low heeled shoes and insanely short hair. And shiny shirts. Oy.

Regardless of my 18 year old awesome self, this thought really hit me recently as I read through many of kooky statements. Although I probably wrote this in my 20's, when my dorkiness turned into "hello my name is Jen, I may be 20 years old but I dress like I'm 35." Hey, wait. I'm almost 35 now and I dress fairly decent. If you can count my pajama pants and tank top I currently have on as decent. You know, I probably just need to move on here...

Back to the thought. Jesus rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Or PEACE, be still." The wind was the effect but the waves were the cause. Jesus dealt with the cause; He dealt with the source of the problem first, the wind. He rebuked the root of the issue. All the disciples were noticing was that the boat was filling with water, as a result of the waves jumping higher and higher. We do the same thing; we pay no attention to the cause, rather, we look at the effect. We forget there is a great wind(cause) when we are drowning in the waves(effect.) How often do we deal with the outer issue, rather than digging down deep to find the source of the problem, to get to the cause.

Jesus simply spoke peace to the manifestation (effect) of the cause, and it had to obey, because it's power was no more. Since Jesus had already rebuked the wind, the cause was crippled at the very root, therefore the waves had no choice BUT to obey, since the cause was no longer productive! Can I get an amen!

How can we apply that to our own lives today? Take any stronghold that you may be facing, this concept can be applied to it, therefore gaining a freedom this very day! Do you struggle with an unhealthy relationship towards food? Has that become a stronghold? I use this example as it's one I deal with and have dealt with for many years. If we ask God to show us the root of the struggle, we can ask Him to put His healing touch on that root, crippling it at the very core of the cause, therefore our new effect will not be sabotage of our diet, and eventually of our success, but rather we would begin to see food in a healthy manner, and for a purpose.

Is your marriage struggling? Get to the root of the cause, rebuke the cause, and let God bless your marriage with the most wonderful effect you could ever imagine having!

Do you battle insecurity? Find the root of the cause. From there, you can begin the healing process. Once you can expose the things that trigger your insecurity, the devil can no longer play games in that arena with you! Sure, you may fall to it now and again, but you will recognize it for what it is.

Do you have no direction? Do you feel stuck in a rut? Do you feel like your existence does not matter? Rebuke the cause! Take charge of the negative effects that are spilling out from your life...remember, the effect has to obey once the cause is dealt with. Does that mean you will instantly see new effects take place? Maybe not. And maybe so. Every person & every situation is different. But there is something to be said for having knowledge of the root issue. Once you can call that thing out, once you expose it for what it is, it takes the power away! It may be a process, and it may be something that just quickly changes for you. But regardless, getting to the root of the issue is the best way to go! There is such power in saying "the truth shall set you free!"

Do you need peace today? Rebuke the cause. Expose the devil for what he is, a fake. A phony. A liar. A devourer. A stinking, no good peace stealer. Rebuke him. And welcome the new effects of peace, joy, love, clarity of thought & direction!

I love this hymn: "peace, peace, wonderful peace. Flowing down, from the father above..."

Thank God for His peace. The peace that He gives in the midst of our storm. You may still go through the storm, but you can have peace as you do.

Psalm 29:11
New King James Version (NKJV)

11 The LORD will give strength to His people;
The LORD will bless His people with peace.

Well I hope that made sense. And if not, just blame my pajama pants.