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Testing Faith - Lessons from the Storms - 195 · Marriage Life and More and Bible Study

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  Vintage Alert: This is a test.
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  Vintage Alert: This station is conducting a test of the emergency broadcasting system.
• 0:05
  Vintage Alert: This is only a test.
• 0:07
  Vintage Alert: This is a test of the emergency broadcasting system.
• 0:30
  Vintage Alert: The broadcasters of your area, in voluntary cooperation with federal, state and local authorities, have developed this system to keep you informed in the event of an emergency.
• 0:40
  Vintage Alert: If this had been an actual emergency, the attention signal you have just heard would have been followed by official information, news or instructions.
• 0:49
  Vintage Alert: This station serves the Northeast Illinois area.
• 0:53
  Vintage Alert: This concludes this test of the emergency broadcast system.
• 0:57
  Vintage Alert: Hey guys, welcome to another episode of Connecting the Gap.
• 1:06
  Vintage Alert: I'm Daniel Moore, your host.
• 1:29
  Daniel Moore: You should thank me.
• 1:30
  Daniel Moore: I cut that screech about 15 seconds short.
• 1:33
  Daniel Moore: That was very loud in my headphones but I played that for a reason and that was actually from 1983, so I guess that's vintage.
• 1:42
  Daniel Moore: You can say that you've heard something from previous history today here on this episode of the podcast Kind of went back into the archives for that one.
• 1:51
  Daniel Moore: But I'll get to that here in just a little bit.
• 1:54
  Daniel Moore: In the meantime, go visit my website, connectingthegapnet.
• 1:57
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• 2:00
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• 2:21
  Daniel Moore: I will be eternally grateful to you for helping me do that Well this week.
• 2:25
  Daniel Moore: We're going back into the archives a little bit this week, back at the very beginning of the podcast.
• 2:31
  Daniel Moore: When I very first started this over three years ago.
• 2:33
  Daniel Moore: I actually did this episode as one of my very first episodes.
• 2:38
  Daniel Moore: At that time I broke it up into two episodes, as back then I did 15-minute episodes here on the podcast and they were video and they were horrendous.
• 2:47
  Daniel Moore: I didn't have very good quality back then and I choose not to ask anybody just up front to go back and watch these from the beginning.
• 2:56
  Daniel Moore: There was some good episodes back then, but they could have been done a lot better.
• 3:01
  Daniel Moore: Hopefully, I think I've came a little ways here with the quality of this podcast and it sounds much better now and, of course, much better not being on video as well.
• 3:10
  Daniel Moore: But I have one that I did there at the beginning that was pretty popular, actually one of my most popular episodes, and I just wanted to bring it back for those of you that maybe haven't went back and actually listened to this episode, because it was a really good one and it was about when God tests us.
• 3:27
  Daniel Moore: And so do you think God does that, do you think he tests us from time to time, and just to see what we will do?
• 3:34
  Daniel Moore: Well, this week, on this episode of Connecting the Gap, we're going to talk a little bit about that.
• 3:40
  Daniel Moore: When God gives us a test, you know, in school, testing is an opportunity to reveal your understanding.
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  Daniel Moore: We always get tests when we go to school.
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  Daniel Moore: Our teacher teaches us, we take the test and then we see what we know and that helps us move on to our next grade.
• 4:12
  Daniel Moore: Well, in life, testing is an opportunity to reveal your faith.
• 4:18
  Daniel Moore: Do you have faith?
• 4:20
  Daniel Moore: Do you have faith in God?
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  Daniel Moore: Do you have faith in the Bible and biblical things as far as your life is concerned?
• 4:27
  Daniel Moore: Well, at times of testing, your faith is going to come out.
• 4:31
  Daniel Moore: You will really see where you're at in your faith.
• 4:34
  Daniel Moore: Walk when you have to walk through a valley and you have to walk through a test.
• 4:39
  Daniel Moore: And you know, sometimes God puts us in difficult positions just to test us and believe it or not.
• 4:47
  Daniel Moore: Many of Jesus' miracles involve the testing of faith.
• 4:50
  Daniel Moore: The miracle of Jesus walking on the water marks the second, not the first, time that Jesus used the storm on the Sea of Galilee to test his disciples.
• 5:02
  Daniel Moore: Have you ever thought about the fact that sometimes your problems may be engineered by God so that you will learn how to depend on him for times of even greater stress in the future?
• 5:12
  Daniel Moore: You know God is always up to something in the lives of his people and this week, on this week's episode, we're going to learn what he is doing and what he was doing at that time through his son, jesus Christ, the day that he walked on water.
• 5:28
  Daniel Moore: The text we're going to be reading from this week is Mark, chapter 6, verses 45 to 52.
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  Daniel Moore: So let's find out what happens when Jesus walks on the water.
• 5:41
  Daniel Moore: Well, if you remember that at the height of the Cold War, the emergency broadcast system was initiated in our country to allow for the president to address the entire nation in times of emergency, in time, the emergency broadcasting system was expanded to an interagency system that could be used in state and local emergencies and in between the years of 1976 and 1996, the emergency broadcast system was used more than 20,000 times in civil emergencies and who issued severe weather advisories.
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  Daniel Moore: This system was actually also used on 9-11.
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  Daniel Moore: Jets crashed into the Twin Towers.
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  Daniel Moore: You can go on YouTube and you can actually pull up the recording of the emergency broadcast system message that was delivered within 10 minutes of that happening across New York City.
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  Daniel Moore: So that horrendous screeching noise that we played in the intro today for this week's podcast, that you had to endure for about 45 seconds or so, that was the emergency broadcast system, basically what that broadcast system test said this is a test.
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  Daniel Moore: For the next 60 seconds, this station will conduct the test of the emergency broadcast system.
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  Daniel Moore: This is only a test.
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  Daniel Moore: And then about 40 seconds worth of that screech would take place, which I gracefully protected you from having to listen.
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  Daniel Moore: 40 seconds of that today the most piercing wail you'll ever hear in your whole life.
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  Daniel Moore: And then following that would be this script.
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  Daniel Moore: If this had been an actual emergency, the attention signal you just heard would have been followed by official information, news or instructions.
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  Daniel Moore: All radio stations and TV stations are required to run that periodically throughout the year just to make sure it's still working.
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  Daniel Moore: I can vouch for that because I work for a radio station and we do these tests every day and you know we've all probably heard this test on the radio or TV at some time or other.
• 7:45
  Daniel Moore: But I want to tell you today that I'm pretty confident that God has his own emergency broadcast system, designed specifically for his children, and he conducts these tests in our lives so that we will be prepared when we have real emergencies.
• 8:02
  Daniel Moore: And as we open our Bibles today to Mark, chapter 6, we're going to visit one of these such tests that Jesus performed and I want you to know that the miracle of Jesus walking on the water is recorded for us both in Mark and in Matthew and in John.
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  Daniel Moore: Only the book of Luke does not actually record this story and in all three cases where this miracle is found, it always follows right after the feeding of the 5,000.
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  Daniel Moore: And we're going to find out why here in just a few moments.
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  Daniel Moore: Before we look at these verses, I want to remind you that over in chapter 4, that storm seemed to be almost demonic because, remember, jesus rebuked the storm.
• 8:44
  Daniel Moore: That storm seemed to be almost demonic because, remember, jesus rebuked the storm like he would rebuke a demon, and the storm was quelled.
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  Daniel Moore: Well, here, in this situation, the storm simply is a reflection of a wind blowing in the wrong direction and the disciples having a hard time getting where they are wanting to go.
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  Daniel Moore: So both of these two storms that are mentioned here are different.
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  Daniel Moore: Where they are wanting to go?
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  Daniel Moore: So both of these two storms that are mentioned here are different.
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  Daniel Moore: In the first storm, jesus is in the boat with the disciples, even though he's asleep in the boat.
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  Daniel Moore: In this storm here in chapter 6, he is not in the boat he actually ends up coming to the boat, but he's not in it during the storm.
• 9:21
  Daniel Moore: So those are two different storms, but it's the same Jesus, the same disciples and the same Sea of Galilee.
• 9:28
  Daniel Moore: And we begin understanding this by examining the pattern of this test in verse 45.
• 9:34
  Daniel Moore: Immediately, we are told, jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he sent the multitude away.
• 9:44
  Daniel Moore: Now, the reason that we know the importance of the feeding of the 5,000 and the walking on the water and the storm is because John connects these two together for us, and he helps us understand something that we wouldn't know without his writing.
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  Daniel Moore: Here's what John tells us about the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6, verse 14.
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  Daniel Moore: It says take him by force to make him king.
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  Daniel Moore: He departed again to the mountain by himself alone.
• 10:10
  Daniel Moore: Now, the crowd that had been there the day when Jesus fed them was dangerously fueled with messianic fever.
• 10:36
  Daniel Moore: They saw what Jesus did and they wanted to make him their king right then and there I mean why not?
• 10:41
  Daniel Moore: They just got free fish and chips right, and Jesus realized what they were up to and he didn't want that to happen because he knew his time wasn't come, yet it wasn't time for him to become king, and so the Bible says two things happened.
• 10:57
  Daniel Moore: First, jesus went to the mountains to pray, and it says that he made his disciples get into the boat and go to the other side of the sea.
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  Daniel Moore: You see, the people who had experienced the miracle of the feeding of the thousands wanted to crown Jesus, and Jesus knew that his time had not come, so he had to get away from the crowd to keep them from doing what they shouldn't do.
• 11:20
  Daniel Moore: What's intriguing about this is that, reading between the lines the feeding of the 5,000, that was actually a failure.
• 11:29
  Daniel Moore: Neither the crowd nor the disciples got the message that Jesus intended to convey.
• 11:35
  Daniel Moore: For instance, jesus wanted the crowd to join him in thanking God for what he had done, but instead, according to John's account of the same miracle, they just rushed in and tried to make Jesus king.
• 11:48
  Daniel Moore: And that's not what he was up to.
• 11:50
  Daniel Moore: And he intended that his disciples, who are participants in the miracle, would take some giant steps forward understanding who he was.
• 11:59
  Daniel Moore: Instead, you get the impression that the disciples, each with a basket full of leftovers, are standing flat-footed and complaining what in the world are we going to do with all of this food.
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  Daniel Moore: In other words, the crowd said what's next?
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  Daniel Moore: The disciples, on the other hand, they said so what you know?
• 12:26
  Daniel Moore: Neither one of them got it.
• 12:27
  Daniel Moore: And the real issue in this is that Jesus had done a miracle and his hope was that the disciples would come to know who he was, as they do at the end of this story, that he was truly the Son of God and he had no intentions whatsoever of hastening the day of his becoming king over Israel.
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  Daniel Moore: That wasn't about to happen.
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  Daniel Moore: So Jesus goes to the mountain and the disciples are sent across the sea so that they can get away from the crowd.
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  Daniel Moore: Now the interesting thing is about this miracle is once again a rhythm that we've noticed in the Gospels that I don't want you to forget is once again a rhythm that we've noticed in the Gospels that I don't want you to forget.
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  Daniel Moore: That is, that this time of testing that we're going to examine with the disciples comes after a mountaintop experience.
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  Daniel Moore: Remember that often the depth of the wave is equal to the height of the wave that goes before it.
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  Daniel Moore: Oftentimes, after a mountaintop experience, there's a valley that comes.
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  Daniel Moore: We not only know that because the scripture teaches it.
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  Daniel Moore: We know it because it happens to us when we have a moment of great victory in our lives, a great mountaintop experience.
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  Daniel Moore: We are more vulnerable then than we know.
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  Daniel Moore: In fact, as you go through the scripture, you see this rhythm.
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  Daniel Moore: You see it in the lives of the scripture.
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  Daniel Moore: You see this rhythm.
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  Daniel Moore: You see it in the lives of the disciples and the life of Jesus.
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  Daniel Moore: You see it in the Old and New Testament.
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  Daniel Moore: For instance, after Elijah's victory on Mount Carmel, he's chased down by Jezebel who was trying to kill him.
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  Daniel Moore: After Jesus was baptized, the Bible says he was led into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
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  Daniel Moore: After Paul's vision of heaven, he was given a thorn in the flesh.
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  Daniel Moore: After the mountaintop, you better look out for the valley.
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  Daniel Moore: In fact, I can read a story this week that illustrates it.
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  Daniel Moore: According to this story, a famous Old Testament scholar of past years, a man by the name of George Adam Smith, was climbing the Weisshorn, which is above the Zermatt Valley in Switzerland, and he was with his guide, and it was a stormy day and they had made the ascent on this mountain on the sheltered side of the mountain, and when they reached the top, george Adam Smith was so excited and exhilarated by the thought of what he was going to see that he rushed to the edge and the wind almost blew him off.
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  Daniel Moore: At the edge of the mountain, smith was grabbed by his guide and his guide said to him On your knees, george, adam Smith, on your knees.
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  Daniel Moore: You are only safe up here when you are on your knees.
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  Daniel Moore: And I thought to myself that's true, isn't it?
• 15:07
  Daniel Moore: When you've had your mountaintop experience, you better get on your knees, because that's when the enemy comes and that's when you're most vulnerable.
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  Daniel Moore: Why is that?
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  Daniel Moore: You feel exhilarated.
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  Daniel Moore: You feel like maybe, if you're not careful, you've done something, you've reached a goal.
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  Daniel Moore: That's when he loves to come and bring us down.
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  Daniel Moore: So here's that rhythm.
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  Daniel Moore: Again.
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  Daniel Moore: That test followed a time of great blessing, the pattern of the test.
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  Daniel Moore: Now let's get into the story itself and the preparation for the test.
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  Daniel Moore: We are told in verses 45 through 46 that Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side while he sent the multitudes away.
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  Daniel Moore: And when he had sent them away, he departed to the mountain to pray Once again.
• 15:59
  Daniel Moore: Here's another lesson that God seems to be impressing upon us.
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  Daniel Moore: Lesson that God seems to be impressing upon us.
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  Daniel Moore: The Bible says Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go to the other side.
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  Daniel Moore: So apparently, in reading the way that's worded, that's not what they wanted to do, because the word itself is so intense.
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  Daniel Moore: It's about urgency.
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  Daniel Moore: It's almost like Jesus forced them against their will to get in the boat, and maybe they just wanted to stay with Jesus, but he thrust them into this boat and the boat out into the middle of the Sea of Galilee and right into the teeth of a terrible storm.
• 16:37
  Daniel Moore: Yes, jesus did that.
• 16:41
  Daniel Moore: He did that to his disciples.
• 16:44
  Daniel Moore: And do you think he didn't know what was going to happen?
• 16:46
  Daniel Moore: Yes, jesus did that.
• 16:46
  Daniel Moore: He did that to his disciples.
• 16:47
  Daniel Moore: And do you think he didn't know what was going to happen?
• 16:49
  Daniel Moore: Sure, he knew.
• 16:51
  Daniel Moore: There's this little statement that has been written about problems.
• 16:55
  Daniel Moore: Here's what it says Problems are situations engineered by God to demonstrate our inadequacy, so that we will look to his sufficiency as our only hope.
• 17:07
  Daniel Moore: I'm going to read that again Problems or situations engineered by God to demonstrate our inadequacy, so that we will look to his sufficiency as our only hope.
• 17:18
  Daniel Moore: Sometimes God gives us problems so that we will understand how inadequate we are without him.
• 17:25
  Daniel Moore: And you say well, don't we know that already?
• 17:29
  Daniel Moore: No, of course we don't.
• 17:33
  Daniel Moore: As long as we got something, we can do, something we can make happen.
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  Daniel Moore: And we don't need God necessarily.
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  Daniel Moore: We don't sense we need him.
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  Daniel Moore: We push him to the side.
• 17:44
  Daniel Moore: But how many of you know whether we need him or not?
• 17:47
  Daniel Moore: We do flat out need him, don't we?
• 17:50
  Daniel Moore: And so he engineers these problems and sometimes these problems we just don't have any answers to, so that we can see how insufficient we are and then trust in him for the sufficiency that he alone can provide.
• 18:05
  Daniel Moore: Jesus sent his disciples into the storm and he knew ahead of time what would happen.
• 18:11
  Daniel Moore: So what did happen?
• 18:13
  Daniel Moore: Well, first of all, there was a time of isolation.
• 18:17
  Daniel Moore: Notice in verse 47,.
• 18:20
  Daniel Moore: It says Now, when the evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea and he was alone on the land.
• 18:26
  Daniel Moore: Matthew says but the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.
• 18:33
  Daniel Moore: Now, in the fourth watch of the night and John tells the story this way in chapter 6, verse 16, now, when evening came, the disciples went down to the sea, got into the boat and went over the sea toward Capernaum, and it was already dark.
• 18:51
  Daniel Moore: Jesus hadn't come to them Now.
• 18:54
  Daniel Moore: If you've read these verses carefully and you've listened to what they've said, let me tell you this was an eerie time.
• 19:01
  Daniel Moore: This was the night.
• 19:03
  Daniel Moore: In fact, the scripture tells us what time it was it was between three o'clock in the morning and six o'clock in the morning, that's the fourth watch of the night.
• 19:13
  Daniel Moore: The disciples began their journey in the evening and they've been working all night long.
• 19:17
  Daniel Moore: And it's now three o'clock in the morning, and how many of you know, nothing good ever happens.
• 19:24
  Daniel Moore: At three o'clock in the morning, the disciples were in the middle of the Sea of Galilee.
• 19:29
  Daniel Moore: They were rowing their boat for all they were worth.
• 19:32
  Daniel Moore: The wind was blowing and it was a time of isolation.
• 19:37
  Daniel Moore: And it was also a time of desperation.
• 19:40
  Daniel Moore: Notice in verse 48, jesus saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them.
• 19:47
  Daniel Moore: Matthew 14 says the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.
• 19:53
  Daniel Moore: And John says the sea arose because a great wind was blowing.
• 19:58
  Daniel Moore: The scripture says that what happened was the disciples set off for Capernaum, and the more they rode, the more the wind was blowing against them.
• 20:07
  Daniel Moore: So they were rowing into the wind.
• 20:10
  Daniel Moore: The wind was not helping them.
• 20:12
  Daniel Moore: How many of you know, the wind is a pretty strong force.
• 20:16
  Daniel Moore: The wind is very strong.
• 20:18
  Daniel Moore: It's a very strong force that we have to deal with sometimes Tornadoes, ef4s and EF5s.
• 20:25
  Daniel Moore: They can get up to 140 to 175 mile an hour winds.
• 20:29
  Daniel Moore: We don't think of it very often, but the disciples were sure thinking of it that night and the wind was contrary.
• 20:36
  Daniel Moore: And John fills in some additional details.
• 20:39
  Daniel Moore: Here's what he says when they had rode about three to four miles.
• 20:44
  Daniel Moore: Here's what he says when they had rode about three to four miles.
• 20:45
  Daniel Moore: Here's what he was saying.
• 20:46
  Daniel Moore: The length of the journey which the disciples took off as Jesus instructed them, was about five miles.
• 20:52
  Daniel Moore: The Bible says they had rode about three or four miles, so they were more than halfway.
• 20:58
  Daniel Moore: And Matthew tells us that Jesus came to them in the fourth watch of the night.
• 21:04
  Daniel Moore: Now get this in your head.
• 21:07
  Daniel Moore: They had begun their journey the scripture says, along toward evening.
• 21:10
  Daniel Moore: So they had been rowing on the Sea of Galilee for somewhere between seven and nine hours.
• 21:16
  Daniel Moore: It had taken them seven to nine hours to travel three or four miles.
• 21:20
  Daniel Moore: So you can definitely get some idea of the strength of this wind.
• 21:24
  Daniel Moore: Basically, they were just treading water.
• 21:28
  Daniel Moore: They weren't going anywhere.
• 21:31
  Daniel Moore: And Mark tells us what Jesus saw from his vantage point he saw them straining at rowing.
• 21:36
  Daniel Moore: In other words, they were giving it everything they had.
• 21:40
  Daniel Moore: And I believe their desperation now had started long ago.
• 21:44
  Daniel Moore: Somewhere in that seven to nine hours they didn't even think about getting to Capernaum.
• 21:49
  Daniel Moore: At this point they were just thinking about saving their lives.
• 21:52
  Daniel Moore: They didn't know if they were going to make it.
• 21:55
  Daniel Moore: That wind was so strong and Jesus saw this thing and he watched.
• 22:01
  Daniel Moore: And Jesus saw the disciples rowing.
• 22:04
  Daniel Moore: For all they were worth, they had their backs toward their destination.
• 22:08
  Daniel Moore: They had been rowing all night and now it was not just to get to the other side, but it was to stay alive.
• 22:16
  Daniel Moore: They were desperate.
• 22:17
  Daniel Moore: Remember, a problem is a situation engineered by God to make us understand our own insufficiency, so that we will trust him for everything that we need.
• 22:28
  Daniel Moore: He's got them right where he wants them.
• 22:33
  Daniel Moore: Now the process of the test, and the best way I can tell you this is to kind of review the different senses of the disciples and what happened to them that day.
• 22:42
  Daniel Moore: So let's begin with what they saw.
• 22:43
  Daniel Moore: What did the disciples and what happened to them that day?
• 22:44
  Daniel Moore: So let's begin with what they saw.
• 22:44
  Daniel Moore: What did the disciples see?
• 22:47
  Daniel Moore: Well, in Matthew 6, 48, and about the fourth watch of the night, jesus came to them walking on the sea and he would have passed them by.
• 22:56
  Daniel Moore: And then they saw him walking on the sea.
• 23:00
  Daniel Moore: Now the disciples are rowing with all of their hearts and weariness is setting in from an all-nighter and it's three o'clock in the sea.
• 23:04
  Daniel Moore: Now the disciples are rowing with all of their hearts and weariness is setting in from an all-nighter, and it's three o'clock in the morning.
• 23:07
  Daniel Moore: They look up and they see something moving across the top of the water towards them.
• 23:12
  Daniel Moore: And John tells us they saw Jesus walking on the sea and he was drawing near to the boat.
• 23:19
  Daniel Moore: In other words, he was coming toward them and he was gaining on them.
• 23:24
  Daniel Moore: Now, just stop and think about that for a moment.
• 23:27
  Daniel Moore: What the disciples saw was this figure gliding across the top of the water and he was going at such a great speed that they thought he was going to go right past them.
• 23:38
  Daniel Moore: And apparently he got alongside of them.
• 23:41
  Daniel Moore: And that's when he looked and said Don't be afraid, it is I.
• 23:46
  Daniel Moore: And they realized who it was.
• 23:48
  Daniel Moore: Well, that's what they saw.
• 23:51
  Daniel Moore: Here's what they said.
• 23:54
  Daniel Moore: Mark, chapter 6, verse 49, and they supposed it was a ghost.
• 23:58
  Daniel Moore: They cried out.
• 24:00
  Daniel Moore: In Matthew it says they were troubled, saying it was a ghost.
• 24:05
  Daniel Moore: And they cried out in fear and the word for ghost in the New Testament language is the word phantasma, from which we get our word phantom.
• 24:14
  Daniel Moore: They thought it was a phantom, a ghost, and this is what they felt.
• 24:19
  Daniel Moore: In verse 50, it says and they saw him and they were troubled.
• 24:24
  Daniel Moore: Is that not the understatement of the scriptures?
• 24:29
  Daniel Moore: And they were troubled and they cried out in fear.
• 24:31
  Daniel Moore: And they saw Jesus walking on the sea, drawing near the boat, and they were afraid.
• 24:35
  Daniel Moore: That's Matthew and John's contribution to this story.
• 24:39
  Daniel Moore: In other words, panic was ricocheting throughout the boat.
• 24:43
  Daniel Moore: Some were standing, some were screaming, perhaps some ready to jump into the sea.
• 24:49
  Daniel Moore: Well, why were they afraid?
• 24:51
  Daniel Moore: Why were they so afraid?
• 24:53
  Daniel Moore: I mean, let's face it, we would have been afraid too.
• 24:57
  Daniel Moore: But once they saw that it was Jesus, why were they afraid?
• 25:00
  Daniel Moore: Well, if you jump down in your Bibles to Mark 6, verse 52, and notice For they had not understood about the loaves, because their hearts were hardened what do you mean?
• 25:13
  Daniel Moore: They hadn't understood about the loaves?
• 25:15
  Daniel Moore: Well, they had still not figured out that it was Jesus, the Son of the living God, who was involved with them.
• 25:22
  Daniel Moore: They had been with him.
• 25:24
  Daniel Moore: They had handed out the food.
• 25:26
  Daniel Moore: They knew something miraculous had happened One little boy's lunch had become enough food for 15,000 people.
• 25:34
  Daniel Moore: What an incredible thing.
• 25:36
  Daniel Moore: But they still didn't connect the dots that this one who had made that happen was indeed the Son of the Living God.
• 25:42
  Daniel Moore: Their hearts were hardened.
• 25:44
  Daniel Moore: So when they were in the storm and the Son of the Living God comes flying by them walking on the sea, they still have not been initiated.
• 25:53
  Daniel Moore: They still don't get it.
• 25:56
  Daniel Moore: We're going to take a break here for a moment.
• 25:58
  Daniel Moore: When we come back, we're going to continue this week's discussion on connecting the gap.
• 26:02
  Daniel Moore: Does God test us?
• 26:05
  Daniel Moore: We'll be back right after this.
• 26:17
  chataboutjesus.com: Stressed out Life's cares and worries, mixed with an overloaded schedule, can often lead to chaos, frustration, anxiety.
• 26:24
  chataboutjesus.com: Would you like to experience peace in your life?
• 26:27
  chataboutjesus.com: The Bible talks quite often about peace Peace with God, peace with your fellow man and peace within your heart.
• 26:36
  chataboutjesus.com: True peace begins with a relationship with God.
• 26:40
  chataboutjesus.com: The Bible says we have peace with God through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
• 26:44
  chataboutjesus.com: Jesus' death on the cross bridged the gap between holy God and sinful man.
• 26:49
  chataboutjesus.com: The ultimate peace comes from knowing that we're completely loved by God and our sins are forgiven through faith in Christ.
• 26:57
  chataboutjesus.com: Perhaps you'd like to meet the author of peace.
• 27:00
  chataboutjesus.com: If you'd like to speak to someone about Jesus, the Prince of Peace, call 888-NEED-HIM.
• 27:14
  chataboutjesus.com: That's 888-NEED-HIM or chat with us at chataboutjesuscom.
• 27:22
  Vintage Alert: You saw me crying in the chapel.
• 27:28
  chataboutjesus.com: The tears I shed were tears of joy.
• 27:32
  chataboutjesus.com: I know the meaning of contentment.
• 27:37
  chataboutjesus.com: Now I'm happy with the Lord.
• 27:47
  Daniel Moore: Welcome back to Connecting the Gap Podcast.
• 27:49
  Daniel Moore: I'm Daniel Moore, your host, and thank you for joining me this week.
• 27:53
  Daniel Moore: This week we are bringing back from the archive an episode that I put out back about three years ago, right when I very first started this podcast, about God giving us tests.
• 28:04
  Daniel Moore: Does God test us sometimes?
• 28:05
  Daniel Moore: Maybe he's tested you here recently.
• 28:08
  Daniel Moore: Well, we're talking about when Jesus tested his disciples one night while they were out on the Sea of Galilee, struggling against the wind, trying to row themselves to the other side of the shore.
• 28:18
  Daniel Moore: And we had reached a point here where we realized that when Jesus came walking towards them on the sea, they didn't recognize him, they didn't get it.
• 28:28
  Daniel Moore: Even after watching him feed 15,000 people with some fish and chips from a little boy's lunch, they still had no idea that he was the son of God.
• 28:38
  Daniel Moore: And you know I just bring this up because I've heard a lot of people say this, and maybe you've said this.
• 28:45
  Daniel Moore: You know you say well, if only I could have lived when Jesus was on this earth, I would have had a lot more faith.
• 28:52
  Daniel Moore: Have you guys ever said something like that?
• 28:55
  Daniel Moore: I've thought that for sure, but the thing is no, you probably wouldn't, because we just learned this about the disciples they lived with Jesus every day and they still didn't get it.
• 29:10
  Daniel Moore: And so what happens is they're afraid.
• 29:13
  Daniel Moore: They see this phantom, and this is what they heard in verse 50.
• 29:18
  Daniel Moore: But immediately, as he's passing by and he looks toward them, he says to them be of good cheer.
• 29:25
  Daniel Moore: And they're looking at Jesus saying yeah right, lord, be of good cheer.
• 29:32
  Daniel Moore: We're about to drown, we're about to go under.
• 29:36
  Daniel Moore: You want us to be of good cheer?
• 29:38
  Daniel Moore: He says be of good cheer.
• 29:41
  Daniel Moore: It is I do not be afraid.
• 29:43
  Daniel Moore: You know they had not yet processed who the I was in.
• 29:48
  Daniel Moore: The it is I.
• 29:49
  Daniel Moore: But is that not a great statement that should take away all of our fear whenever we are afraid and we realize that Jesus has entered into our situation, when we hear him say it is I be not afraid, be of good cheer, I've got this under control.
• 30:05
  Daniel Moore: But Matthew says but immediately Jesus spoke to them saying be of good cheer, it is I do not be afraid.
• 30:14
  Daniel Moore: As the disciples quaked with fear, almost paralyzed, a voice pierced the storm and it cut through their fear it is I be not afraid.
• 30:24
  Daniel Moore: How many of you have ever heard the Lord say that to you in the midst of your fears, in your heart, you hear him say something like this you know, even for myself, daniel, don't be afraid, I'm here, it is I, you know.
• 30:39
  Daniel Moore: I heard that in the hospital once.
• 30:41
  Daniel Moore: I've heard it in my life several times.
• 30:43
  Daniel Moore: It is I, be not afraid.
• 30:46
  Daniel Moore: Now, what was the purpose of all of this?
• 30:49
  Daniel Moore: What was the purpose of the test?
• 30:53
  Daniel Moore: The scripture says in verses 51 and 52 that Jesus went up into the boat after he had identified himself and the wind ceased.
• 31:00
  Daniel Moore: Now let me just talk with you for a moment about the wonder of Jesus, and I'd like to point out that in this account that we have here in Matthew 6, there were actually four miracles.
• 31:11
  Daniel Moore: Now you can only see two of them in Mark, because one of the other ones is in Matthew and the other one is in John, but they are all about the same event, so I'm going to point them out to you.
• 31:23
  Daniel Moore: The first miracle was when Jesus walked on the water.
• 31:26
  Daniel Moore: It says in verse 48 they saw Jesus walking on the sea.
• 31:30
  Daniel Moore: That's miracle number one.
• 31:32
  Daniel Moore: Number two the Bible says in verse 51 that when he got into the boat, as soon as he got into the boat, everything stopped.
• 31:40
  Daniel Moore: The storm was over, the sea was calm, the wind stopped.
• 31:44
  Daniel Moore: It was like wow, all of a sudden, in a moment, it didn't just slow down, it didn't just quietly go away, it screeched to a stop.
• 31:53
  Daniel Moore: So there we have two miracles.
• 31:55
  Daniel Moore: Well, what are the other ones?
• 31:58
  Daniel Moore: Well, the third one is not in this account, but it's in Matthew's account, and that's Peter walking on the water.
• 32:06
  Daniel Moore: And there is a huge debate about why that story is not included in Mark's gospel.
• 32:11
  Daniel Moore: You know, why isn't Peter walking on the water in the gospel of Mark?
• 32:15
  Daniel Moore: Well, one possible answer Mark's gospel was really Peter's account of everything, and Peter was dictating it to Mark and Mark was recording it.
• 32:23
  Daniel Moore: So now get this in your mind Peter's account of everything, and Peter was dictating it to Mark and Mark was recording it.
• 32:24
  Daniel Moore: So now get this in your mind Peter's telling the story and Peter's walking on the water is left out of the account in Mark.
• 32:31
  Daniel Moore: And some people have actually written that they thought that was done because of Peter's humility, not wanting to lift himself up and glorify himself by telling his own success story, himself up and glorify himself by telling his own success story.
• 32:46
  Daniel Moore: And I thought about that for one minute and I realized there's no way that could be true.
• 32:48
  Daniel Moore: I have never noticed, in my study of Peter, any humility whatsoever, have you?
• 32:53
  Daniel Moore: I have not.
• 32:55
  Daniel Moore: So I think it was another reason.
• 32:57
  Daniel Moore: Let me read the account and let's see if you can pick it up.
• 33:01
  Daniel Moore: Here's the account from Matthew.
• 33:03
  Daniel Moore: And Peter answered and said Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.
• 33:09
  Daniel Moore: And he said come.
• 33:11
  Daniel Moore: And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
• 33:16
  Daniel Moore: But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid and beginning to sink and he cried out saying Lord, save me.
• 33:23
  Daniel Moore: And immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him and said oh, you of little faith, why did you doubt?
• 33:30
  Daniel Moore: Well, that's why he didn't want it in the book.
• 33:34
  Daniel Moore: Right there, don't you think?
• 33:36
  Daniel Moore: I think I would have left it out too, wouldn't you?
• 33:38
  Daniel Moore: I would have left it out if I had anything to say about it.
• 33:42
  Daniel Moore: But we have the story in Matthew.
• 33:45
  Daniel Moore: He tells us, and that's the third miracle Jesus walks on the water, he calms the sea, peter walks on the water.
• 33:53
  Daniel Moore: And there's one more.
• 33:54
  Daniel Moore: John tells us about this one and you might be surprised I think I was when I saw it.
• 34:01
  Daniel Moore: Here it is.
• 34:01
  Daniel Moore: It's in John, chapter 6, verse 21.
• 34:04
  Daniel Moore: It says and they willingly received Jesus into the boat and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
• 34:12
  Daniel Moore: How would you have liked to have been on that ride.
• 34:16
  Daniel Moore: Jesus gets into the boat and immediately the boat is where it's supposed to be.
• 34:19
  Daniel Moore: They are about two or three miles out from what we can tell in the story.
• 34:24
  Daniel Moore: But when Jesus gets in the boat he does away with all of distance and all of that, and all of a sudden the boat is wham right at the shore.
• 34:33
  Daniel Moore: That would be a night that you would never forget.
• 34:36
  Daniel Moore: I mean, you see Jesus walking on the water, you see the calm of the storm when he gets in the boat, and then you see Peter trying to do his thing and getting scared and asking Jesus to save him.
• 34:47
  Daniel Moore: And then, finally, when that's all over, jesus gets in the boat and there's no more rowing, there's no more fighting.
• 34:54
  Daniel Moore: You're automatically, immediately at the place you had set out to be hours and hours ago.
• 34:59
  Daniel Moore: That's the wonder of Jesus.
• 35:02
  Daniel Moore: What a night, what a time of miracles.
• 35:08
  Daniel Moore: And the Bible says that the wonder of Jesus eventuated into the worship of Jesus.
• 35:11
  Daniel Moore: Matthew tells us that those who were in the boat came and worshiped him, saying and this is what Jesus had been after all this time those that were in the boat came and they worshiped him, saying truly, you are the Son of God".
• 35:25
  Daniel Moore: They finally got it.
• 35:28
  Daniel Moore: Look what Jesus had to do.
• 35:31
  Daniel Moore: Look what God had to do to get through the hard hearts of his disciples.
• 35:35
  Daniel Moore: He fed 15,000 people with a little boy's lunch.
• 35:39
  Daniel Moore: He walked on the water.
• 35:41
  Daniel Moore: He calmed the sea twice, he got Peter to walk on the water, he took them on the fastest boat trip recorded in history.
• 35:50
  Daniel Moore: And after all that was done, they finally said oh, you must be Jesus, the son of the living God.
• 35:57
  Daniel Moore: And you know what?
• 35:59
  Daniel Moore: We are kind of hard on the disciples, but how many of you could give testimony to the fact that you were almost that stubborn before you came to Jesus?
• 36:11
  Daniel Moore: People witnessed to you, they talked to you.
• 36:13
  Daniel Moore: You saw their changed lives, you saw what God had done in their family.
• 36:17
  Daniel Moore: And they kept saying to you why don't you come to trust Christ?
• 36:20
  Daniel Moore: And you were like, yeah, I don't need that stuff, I don't need that religious stuff.
• 36:30
  Daniel Moore: And then after a while, you just couldn't any longer deny the reality and the power of Jesus Christ, and your hardened heart was broken so that you could say, truly, he is the son of the living God.
• 36:38
  Daniel Moore: They worshiped him.
• 36:41
  Daniel Moore: Well, here's the promise for this test, and this is really special in my estimation the promise for the test.
• 36:48
  Daniel Moore: I want you to kind of visualize this.
• 36:50
  Daniel Moore: I do this a lot when I'm studying the Gospels because of the way the narratives go.
• 36:54
  Daniel Moore: Here's kind of a good way to look at this.
• 36:58
  Daniel Moore: Do you know what a split screen is?
• 37:00
  Daniel Moore: So over here, something's happening and over here, on the other side, something's happening.
• 37:07
  Daniel Moore: They're happening at the same time, but because of technology, we're not allowed to watch them both.
• 37:13
  Daniel Moore: Here's the split screen.
• 37:17
  Daniel Moore: Here are the disciples in their boat in the midst of the storm.
• 37:20
  Daniel Moore: Where's Jesus?
• 37:21
  Daniel Moore: He's in the mountain praying for them.
• 37:23
  Daniel Moore: In the midst of the storm.
• 37:25
  Daniel Moore: He's praying for his disciples.
• 37:27
  Daniel Moore: Is it interesting that when we go through our storms, even though our Lord often engineers them for us as a test, he never stops praying for us?
• 37:36
  Daniel Moore: You remember when Jesus said to Simon Simon, simon, satan desires to test you, but I have prayed for you.
• 37:44
  Daniel Moore: The Bible tells us that the Lord Jesus is in heaven interceding on our behalf.
• 37:49
  Daniel Moore: He's our intercessor.
• 37:51
  Daniel Moore: He's praying for us and especially when we're in the storms, when we're in the difficult times, as some of you are right now, he sees you, he's praying for you and this is a test, but he isn't going to leave you to take the test without his help and encouragement.
• 38:09
  Daniel Moore: God gives us some encouragement from the Bible in case you're in the midst of a test.
• 38:12
  Daniel Moore: The first one is from the earliest book ever written in the Bible, the book of Job, 23, verse 10.
• 38:19
  Daniel Moore: It says but he knows the way that I take and when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
• 38:25
  Daniel Moore: The second one is 1 Peter 1, 6 through 7.
• 38:29
  Daniel Moore: It says in this you greatly rejoice though now, for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials that the genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes, that the genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
• 38:49
  Daniel Moore: The third one is in James 1, verses 2-4.
• 38:53
  Daniel Moore: It 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.
• 39:08
  Daniel Moore: While we're in the midst of the storm, he's in the mountain praying for us, and he's promised us that he will not let the test destroy us.
• 39:15
  Daniel Moore: He uses the test to make us better.
• 39:18
  Daniel Moore: He uses the test to burn off the dross so that the gold in us is purified and we come out In the midst of a testing time.
• 39:27
  Daniel Moore: It's your choice.
• 39:28
  Daniel Moore: You can let it make you better or you can let it make you bitter.
• 39:32
  Daniel Moore: Some people, they get in a storm and they get bitter and they lose everything.
• 39:39
  Daniel Moore: God wants them to learn through the time of testing.
• 39:41
  Daniel Moore: This is a test and I want you to remember three things about a test.
• 39:47
  Daniel Moore: If you're in the storm, if you're in a test, remember he is watching.
• 39:53
  Daniel Moore: He sees you.
• 39:54
  Daniel Moore: He's not asleep, he hasn't gone on vacation.
• 39:57
  Daniel Moore: He's watching you.
• 39:59
  Daniel Moore: Just as Jesus watched his disciples from the mountains that day, he's watching you from heaven, on the authority of the word of God.
• 40:09
  Daniel Moore: You are never out of his sight and you're more present in his vision when you're in a storm than any other time he's watching.
• 40:14
  Daniel Moore: Secondly, he's waiting.
• 40:17
  Daniel Moore: Do a little bit of math.
• 40:20
  Daniel Moore: Jesus came to the disciples in the third watch of the night.
• 40:23
  Daniel Moore: What time is that?
• 40:24
  Daniel Moore: Three o'clock or later, and the Bible says they entered the storm sometime toward the evening.
• 40:30
  Daniel Moore: So he let them experience the storm for somewhere between seven to nine hours before he came to interdict the storm.
• 40:38
  Daniel Moore: And I never want to argue with God, but I have a tendency to argue with God about those things you know, like Lord, if you knew what you were going to do already, if you knew you were going to help me in this thing, why did you let me go seven to nine hours before you came and took away my pain?
• 40:57
  Daniel Moore: Well, he's waiting.
• 40:58
  Daniel Moore: You know why he's waiting?
• 41:00
  Daniel Moore: Because problems are situations engineered by God to prove our inadequacy.
• 41:05
  Daniel Moore: And you cannot prove one's inadequacy in a five-minute moment.
• 41:09
  Daniel Moore: It takes a long time for it to get through to us.
• 41:13
  Daniel Moore: We are not sufficient for these things.
• 41:15
  Daniel Moore: He's waiting.
• 41:17
  Daniel Moore: So if you've been in a storm for a while, maybe you should be kind of looking around and saying Lord, what are you waiting for?
• 41:24
  Daniel Moore: And he usually is very good about telling you the things that you need to clean up as you go through the storm.
• 41:31
  Daniel Moore: And third, he's working.
• 41:34
  Daniel Moore: What do I mean when I say he's working.
• 41:38
  Daniel Moore: He saw them, he waited until the proper moment and at that right moment he came to where they were and entered into their situation.
• 41:47
  Daniel Moore: They didn't come to him, he came to them.
• 41:51
  Daniel Moore: He came to them through the storm on the water.
• 41:54
  Daniel Moore: He got into their boat in the midst of their stress and took them to the destination they wanted to be.
• 42:01
  Daniel Moore: And that's what he does for us.
• 42:04
  Daniel Moore: He's watching, he's waiting and he's working on our behalf.
• 42:09
  Daniel Moore: He loves you.
• 42:10
  Daniel Moore: If he has given to you his best gift, which is his only son, jesus Christ, how would he ever withhold anything from you of value?
• 42:20
  Daniel Moore: Just be patient, become settled down.
• 42:23
  Daniel Moore: Hear his voice saying it is I Be not afraid, and ultimately, his purpose will be experienced in your life.
• 42:32
  Daniel Moore: Are you in a time of testing right now?
• 42:34
  Daniel Moore: As I said there, towards the end, if you are going through that time and maybe you've been in it for a season maybe it is time to re-evaluate your prayer life, re-evaluate your Bible time.
• 42:48
  Daniel Moore: Are you really really trying to figure out and get to the root of this situation and these problems that are going on in your life, to the fact that you can see that God may be trying to teach you something.
• 43:00
  Daniel Moore: I've been in many moments like that, where I've been through a battle and the battle seemed like it was never going to end.
• 43:06
  Daniel Moore: But you know what, as I came out on the other side once, I gave it to Christ and I allowed him to overcome and help me to knock down those strongholds, those things that were keeping me and blinding me from seeing what was going on at that moment, I then saw the light and understood what God was trying to do in me to change me for the situation, so that I would come out better on the other side.
• 43:33
  Daniel Moore: Just get on your knees and ask God to show you what it is that he's trying to show you in the lesson that he's trying to help you to learn.
• 43:40
  Daniel Moore: Rely on Him, he is there for you and he wants to do what he can to help you through all of those bad times, those valleys, and bring you back to those mountaintops where we can worship him and express that he is the Son of God.
• 43:55
  Daniel Moore: Well, I'm out of here for this week.
• 43:58
  Daniel Moore: Visit my website, connectingthegapnet, for everything about our ministry and we'll have a brand new episode next week here on Connecting the Gap.
• 44:06
  Daniel Moore: Until then, I'm Daniel saying God's Word never fails us.
• 44:10
  Daniel Moore: God's Word has stood the test of time and through Jesus' death on the cross, he has connected the gap.
• 44:17
  Aria: You've been listening to Connecting the Gap podcast.
• 44:19
  Aria: In this world, there are many disconnects that cause chaos in our lives.
• 44:23
  Aria: This podcast is birthed from the desire to share hope and restoration of the power of the gospel by being transparent and open in our biblical walk with God.
• 44:31
  Aria: Each week, we take a few moments as we navigate God's word and peer into other people's testimonies and encourage each other to connect the gap.
• 44:38
  Aria: We upload a new audio podcast every Thursday and a video version of it on YouTube and Rumble.
• 44:43
  Aria: We are also on the Christian podcasting app Edify.
• 44:46
  Aria: You can subscribe to our podcast on many of the available podcasting platforms, including Apple Podcast, spotify, amazon Music, iheart Radio, tunein Radio and more.
• 44:56
  Aria: We are also available on your Alexa-enabled devices.
• 44:59
  Aria: If you would like to contact our ministry for any reason, visit our contact page and send us a message.
• 45:04
  Aria: We hope you are blessed by this ministry.
• 45:06
  Aria: This is a production of Connecting the Gap Ministries.