He is in the boat with you.

Fighting for Freedom no.6

Matthew 8:23-27

23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”

26 He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.

27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

A few years ago, a guest speaker taught on this passage. What she said impacted me then and continues to impact me now. She talked about how the disciples had just seen Jesus do miraculous things and then they get into this boat and the chaos of the storm overcomes them. They forget that the son of God is in the boat with them.

My life has always been a little chaotic and for so long that chaos would shake me to my core. So I started to make this phrase “He is in the boat with you.” a part of every day. I started by writing it on my steering wheel in my car. For nearly 2 years it has stayed there as a reminder that the God of the universe is in my boat with me.

Psalm 118:6

The LORD is with me. I will not be afraid. What can people do to me?

In October of last year, I moved churches. It was a difficult transition. The first sunday there, I felt so insecure and out of place. “What am I doing here?” “Did I make the right choice?” “Did I hear God right?” And then out of nowhere I heard “I am in the boat with you.” Overwhelming peace. It had been so long since I had heard that phrase and it reminded me of how faithful God has been to me in the past. Along with hearing that phrase, I got a picture of a little stick figure boat. I knew immediately that it was going to be my first tattoo.

I waited 3 months to actually get it because getting a tattoo on a whim is not the wisest decision. But I did it. On January 2, 2019, I got this boat tattoo to remember that in every chaotic moment He is in the boat with me. The next day, I lost my job and I began one of the most chaotic seasons of my life. Through it all, I have my little boat and the reminder that I am not alone.

Zephaniah 3:17

"The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing."

This is for you: No matter what kind of chaos that life throws at you. He is with you. Not only is He with you but he wants to be in that chaos with you, holding your hand and guiding you through. He deeply wants to dwell with us. Will you let Him?

A song that has been on my heart: https://open.spotify.com/track/6Jp3Z3rrb2sfZjVmDhD2Jq?si=m_Fa0A57QveLuhpFi0Qo8A

My spotify playlist based on this phrase:

https://open.spotify.com/user/lgalenkamp/playlist/0H62GJQ4Y0vMVAqbQoBAMg?si=ySUjETyiRCSzIM1pC2Kb8w