On January 1st I sat down with the Holy Spirit, and thinking of all the amazing things that He did for us in the year prior I asked him what this 2025 year would hold and what I should be expectant for. I waited with excitement at what He would be doing next.
“Turbulence.”
I sat there for a moment not really knowing how to respond but I remember thinking, “Well, that’s not very nice.” Maybe it wasn’t nice, but if it was true, it was kind. Kind that He would want to prepare me for whatever lay ahead. Sometimes we have this perspective that we should never have to face difficult times because we have Jesus, and everything should just be smooth sailing from here on out. There have been times when I have felt like I was in a protective bubble, completely untouchable by what was happening around me. But there are times when we are called to overcome. We can’t be overcomers if there is no challenge to overcome. James 1:2-4 says, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” He says when you fall into various trials, not if. And it is the work of patience that is produced in times of trails that makes us complete, lacking nothing. So, if we want to be complete and lacking nothing, we are going to have to face some trials. But you know what? God is still with us, even in the trials.
As I tried to decide how I felt about the word “turbulence”, the Holy Spirit followed it up with, “but you’re safe with Me.” Well now, there is something I can grab a hold of. He immediately brought to mind a verse that He had been putting in front of me for the last several weeks: Psalm 46:10: “Be still and know that I am God.” See, God had already given me the answer before I ever even asked the question. He wanted me to be prepared, and He wanted to assure me that I had nothing to fear. That is the kindness of God.
As the year began, right away I saw that this word turbulence wasn’t just for me. This would be a year of turbulence for many. I have personally known of a whole handful of deaths that have occurred just in the first 3 months of the year. That is more than I have known over the last 3 years combined. I am constantly confronted with the news of someone else receiving a diagnosis of a terminal illness, an unknown medical mystery, or experiencing a traumatic and life-altering event. More and more I see the need for those all around me to have the comfort and security of knowing Jesus. Wanting to make sure that my feet were firmly planted on solid ground for whatever lies ahead I started doing a little digging into the scripture the Holy Spirit had given to me. “Be still and know that I am God.”
I like to do word studies. Words are one of our biggest forms of communication and often, because of the multiple meanings of words, we can miss so much of what is intended if we don’t do a little more digging. I find this to be very true of the Bible. For example, when I looked at the Hebrew word that used in the original text for “Be still”, I find the word “raphah” (raw-faw) which means “release” or “let go”. I don’t know about you, but that shifts my perception from a picture of me sitting silently in wait for something to change, to me handing something over to God and trusting Him with it.
Let’s look at the word “turbulence.” I haven’t been on a plane in about 20 years but what I remember about turbulence in that setting is that it is bumpy, uncomfortable, unpredictable, and it sounds and feels worse than it probably is. The basic definition of the word is this: A state of confusion without any order; strong, uneven current in air or water. Air and water to me are symbolic of the spirit realm. When I read this, I think of a strong, uneven current in the spirit causing a state of confusion and disorder in the natural. Look around you, would you say that describes the world you are living in? It certainly does for me and everyone in my day-to-day arena. So, we have a warning that this year is going to be a year of confusion, lack of order, chaos. Uncomfortable, bumpy, unstable, unpredictable. We also have assurance that with God we are safe. But we must let go and know who He is if we want to get through it without fear.
If I am in a plane and the pilot has already warned me of some turbulence up ahead, does it accomplish anything for me to grab hold of the person’s arm next to me? Or to bury my head in my lap and scream? It won’t stop what I am about to face, I still have to fly through it. It won’t change the level of strength or the distance of turbulence I will have to endure. What it will do, however, is reinforce to my mind and my body the need to brace myself because catastrophe is at hand. I might start having thoughts like, “what if the plane gets damaged? What if the plane goes down? How is something this big and this heavy just floating along in the air anyway?” Those are projected thoughts that come from fear, expectation of something negative to happen and the need to prepare for the worst.
But what if I just put my ear buds in, turn my music up loud and just start praising the Lord? What if I get myself immersed in the Bible, a good Psalm perhaps? What if I chose to just trust the pilot who is flying the plane, who already warned me that there was turbulence up ahead? Doubtful that this is their first experience. What if I closed my eyes and just got close to God for a moment and began to thank Him for all the times He has rescued me and pulled me out of whatever mess I got myself into? What if I just recognized that He is bigger than the plane, bigger than the wind, bigger than the chaos and the disorder and the tension and the noise and my whole life is in His hands? What if, since there is nothing about it that I can control anyway, I just let go and know that He is God?
That word “know” is the Hebrew word “Yada” (yaw-dah) which means “to properly ascertain by seeing”. Other words include perceive, understand, consider, declare, discern, recognize, observe, comprehend, discover. To me, to know something is to be absolutely convinced that it’s true. No doubt. I cannot be persuaded away from it. For example, I know what color my eyes are. If someone tries to tell me my eyes are blue, I will say they are color blind. I wouldn’t even have to go to a mirror and check. I have seen my eyes; I see them every day. And I know that they are unchanging. I have also seen God. I see Him every day and I know that God is unchanging. Malachi 3:6 says, “I am the LORD, I do not change.”
Sometimes we can view God as being so big that He is too big to be near to us, too big for our problems, too big to really know what we are dealing with. Too big to really care. But I can assure you, He cares deeply.
Other times we can know God as close and personal, but we forget that He is also GOD Almighty. Powerful, mighty, wonderous, wise, and zealous for us. We think that our trials contain enemies that are bigger than the God who is our friend and we forget that He is the only uncreated being and therefore everything was created by Him and therefore everything must bow to Him.
He is either big and distant, or close and small. In either case, we do not see Him rightly. It is knowing that He is GOD that is to be the foundation of our faith that carries us through the turbulence. We can let go because He is God.
Think of when Jesus calms the storm. When He and the disciples got into the boat He said, “let us cross over to the other side.” (Luke 8:22). Jesus was able to be at peace in the boat during the storm because He knew He was going to get to the other side. He didn’t let the turbulence of the wind and rain distract Him from where He was going or what He was going to do when He got there. He stood firm in His faith.
Think about when Peter got out of the boat to walk on water to meet Jesus. Matthew 14:30-31 says, “But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, ‘Lord save me!’ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?'” Peter let the turbulence of the wind distract him from where he was going, and he gave in to fear.
Psalm 139:5 (TPT) says, “You’ve gone into my future to prepare the way, and in kindness you follow behind me to spare me from the harm of my past. You have laid your hand on me!”
Whatever turbulence this year holds, know that God has already seen us on the other side of it. And He is not only there waiting for us, but He is walking in it alongside us, and He is walking behind us to make sure that nothing holds us back. He is faithful to keep us safe, as long as we are faithful to stay close to Him. So, let’s fix our eyes on Him, let go of what we cannot control, and know that He is God.
