Today Daily Devotional

Caring for our own is one of our most powerful motivations. We tend to love those who are closest to us, including ourselves. And anything or anyone who hurts us or our loved ones becomes our enemy.

Jesus observed that the people around him had a saying: “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” People felt that love was wasted on strangers, and love for people who hurt or threatened them was doubly wasted.

But Jesus came to reveal the character of God, our Creator who loves and cares for us all. He sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. God is our good Father who richly provides all things for our enjoyment (1 Timothy 6:17). In the original Greek language of the New Testament, there is a specific word describing love that does not seek personal gain: agapé. Throughout the Bible we find that this is the kind of love God shows us.

God sent his beloved, one and only Son to die for us when we were his enemies (Romans 5:10). And Jesus—God’s gift to his enemies—calls us to show this same kind of love. We cannot produce this kind of love by ourselves, but we receive it from God—as freely as the sun shines on us. And we are called to share it freely with every­one around us.

The story of Noah and the flood is not usually described as a journey at sea, but Noah was one of the Bible’s most gifted seafarers. He built a massive ship that housed his family and all kinds of animals. And with God’s help he navigated 40 days and nights of storming and flooding. Then they all waited months for the waters to recede.

It must have been extraordinary to see the waters coming from all directions—from the ground, from the sea, from the sky—a cataclysm bringing destruction on the earth. Though Noah had built the ship and prepared for this over many years, the force of the storm and the scale of devastation must have been shocking and overwhelming for Noah and his family.

Yet God had prepared a way of salvation. God taught Noah how to build the ark. And when the flood came, God guided Noah, his family, and all the animals to a place where they could land. God also promised that a flood like that would never come again.

The Bible shows that God’s justice flows together with his love and mercy. Despite the trauma and destruction of the flood, God provides shelter and promises new and full life. Today we see this even more clearly in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for all who believe in him!

The old saying “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” can be helpful for teaching kids to remain calm in the face of a bully. Even so, harsh words can have a striking effect on our lives. Unexpected criticism, hateful comments by a supposed friend, or an offhand remark from a family member can cut deep into our hearts and fester. To our shame, we often retaliate with spiteful words of our own.

Isaiah 25 says that “the breath of the ruthless is like a storm driving against a wall.” God’s people had been cornered and overwhelmed by ruthless words. They could not keep going in their own strength.

But the prophet reminds them that God is their shelter in the storm. Isaiah 25 begins with this joyful proclamation: “Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things you planned long ago.” God has planned from the beginning to protect and guide us, giving us hope and a future with him—as well as many blessings in our lives each day.

Maybe you feel trapped in a corner as ruthless words bear down on you. Know that the Lord can be your shelter. He can give you peace, lifting your heart to remember and sing about the great things he has done for you.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were many questions about seafarers’ being able to get home. Long delays, extended contracts, and quarantine requirements weighed heavily, and the sheer uncertainty of when it all might be over caused mental anguish. Facing a storm can be hard enough, but when people face the possibility that the storm might not pass, they can run the risk of losing all hope.

The story in Acts 27 describes the apostle Paul traveling to Rome as a prisoner on a ship. Bad weather at sea could be expected for a few days at a time, but in this case the ship was caught in a storm that had been raging for a couple of weeks. Without seeing the sun or stars, the sailors could not even guess the position of their vessel. The crew and passengers must have felt battered and beaten. The text says they had stopped eating; many gave up hope and were ready to die.

But God sent an angel to give everyone a message through Paul: “. . . God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you.” They were soon shipwrecked, but all were able to get to shore safely. The storm ended. God was directing the situation, even when they had lost human hope.

In most seaports there are special pilots that join with an incoming ship to guide it into port. These harbor pilots know the unseen obstacles under the water, as well as the currents and other details of the local port. The ship’s crew needs the harbor pilot with them on board so that they can respond immediately if there is danger ahead.

In Isaiah 43 we find a similar description from God. The Lord guides us through the overwhelming waters of life. The way ahead is unexplored and dangerous to us, but God comes alongside to reassure us. He is not impersonal, like the waters—or even like a pilot who guides a ship because it is his job. God calls us by name, and he assures us, “You are mine.” The Lord shows us tender compassion, spending time with us in the midst of our struggles. God not only knows the way; he also knows us as we travel it.

Jesus is with us always (Matthew 28:20). He is Immanuel, “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). It is a profound truth of the Christian faith that we are not alone but that our Lord and Savior continues to lead and guide us. If you feel like you are in the deep waters of life, know that Jesus is with you and let him be your hope.

The teaching that Jesus mentions in this passage has become a rhyme related to sailors: “Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Red sky at morning, sailors’ warning.” The sky appears red when the sun, at morning or evening, shines through clouds—the water particles in the clouds break up the light rays so that we see an orange-red glow.

As storms in the region tended to move from east to west, seeing the red light from clouds in the east meant that a storm was coming toward you, and seeing it in the west meant that it was moving away. Though they have much more sophisticated tools today, a red sky can still mean a lot to seafarers.

At the beginning of Matthew 16, we read that the religious leaders came to test Jesus by asking for a sign from heaven. This question is surprising since it came soon after Jesus’ miracle of feeding a huge crowd of “four thousand men, besides women and children” (Matthew 15:38). Was that not enough of a sign?

Jesus’ miracles were signs of the kingdom of God coming near (Mark 1:15), but few people were reading those signs. So Jesus hinted that his critics should take note of this. But they were stubborn and would not open their eyes. What was coming—in some ways like a storm—was good news: the Son of God, Jesus himself, had come to die for everyone’s sin so that all who believe in him could be saved.

In 1928 the American author John A. Shedd wrote, “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”

In the history of shipbuilding, some improvements have come with technology, but most improvements are made in response to disasters at sea. The sinking of the Titanic, for example, made clear that there should be enough lifeboats for all passengers. After the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska, new oil tankers in the United States are fitted with full double hulls. These requirements, born of past disasters, have saved lives and prevented further ­disasters.

Knowing the history of shipwrecks and disasters, mariners take all storms seriously. There is a sense of relief when any storm passes and the waters grow calm. When the ship can sail safely through a storm, the crew can work calmly and make their way to the next port of call. But they remember it happened.

The seafarers described in Psalm 107 had that sense of relief. Their ship was spared, and they arrived safely at their destination. Safe passage calls for thanksgiving!

Looking back at the storms of your life, are you thankful to God for bringing you through? Can you see his unfailing love and wonderful deeds for you?

The purpose of the church is often misunderstood. Many people see a “holier than thou” attitude among its members. Yet Scripture teaches that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Many others see the church as a place of spiritual relaxation or material blessing. That misconception causes frustration for people who are faithful believers but still have trouble and distress in their lives. If we describe it in nautical terms, the church is not a warship or a cruise ship but a lifeboat.

The seafarers described in Psalm 107 were helpless in the storm. They had no control over the movements of their ship. But they “cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress.” They could not rely on their own strength, but they could trust in the power of the Lord.

This is still true today. God’s Word does not say we will not experience “the valley of the shadow of death,” but it does promise that God is with us (Psalm 23:4). God does not ­ignore the cries of his people; he hears us in our distress.

Are you spinning around in a storm in your life? Rather than trying to fix things in your strength alone, ask the Lord to be with you in your distress and to have mercy on you.

Ships today are the largest moving objects that people have built. On November 30, 2020, the ONE Apus—a mega container ship the size of a city block—was sailing in stormy seas off the coast of Japan and lost 1,800 containers overboard. Many more lay crushed on the deck of the ship. It was a massive ship, and yet it was tiny and vulnerable compared to the mighty waves of a storm at sea.

We are right to fear the awesome power of the ocean. But we should fear even more the Lord, who created the wind and the waves.

The seafarers in our text saw the mighty power of God. Psalm 107 gives several examples of people who were in difficult situations and saw the power of God. People in desert wastelands, prisoners in exile and slavery, rebels with deadly diseases, and merchants at sea. All despaired for their lives, but they saw God’s power and he rescued them. The same God who stirred up the waves also brought these people “out of their distress.” God is the sovereign Lord of the universe; he created our world and sustains it.

This psalm celebrates the ­power of God. It should lead us to fear God in awe and wonder, knowing that he loves and cares for us. It should especially leads us to worship God for his wonderful deeds.

Sometimes we learn something in a storm that we couldn’t learn any other way. In this story Jesus and his disciples are crossing the Sea of Galilee in a small fishing boat.

Some of the disciples were fishermen, and they had spent much of their lives on this body of water. So from one point of view, they were the experts—and Jesus, who had grown up as a carpenter’s son, was in their care.

Yet their expertise was being tested. While Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat, the wind suddenly blew stronger. Soon the sea came crashing over the sides and swamping the boat. These fishermen knew how dangerous this storm was. They knew that they all could drown.

They woke Jesus from his sleep, saying, “Don’t you care?!” But as soon as he woke up, Jesus said to the wind and the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” And the sea became calm. The disciples were in a state of awe. “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Through this terrifying experience the disciples saw clearly who Jesus was. They were tested in the area of life they knew best, and Jesus showed he is Lord over all things. The storms of life can trouble our souls, but God can reveal more of himself to us through these experiences.