Excitement in the boat, part 15: one of those days

Soon afterwards, He began going around from one city and village to another, proclaiming and preaching the kingdom of God. The twelve were with Him,

Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, "Let us go over to the other side of the lake." So they launched out. (Luke 8:1, 22 NASB

We missed a point at the beginning of this passage and, before we move on, are stopping to explore it. 

Chapter 8 of Luke began by introducing the walking tour of Israel on which Jesus and His disciples embarked. They were traveling from one city and village to another, with Jesus teaching and preaching as they went. No miracles are listed in those first few verses in Luke 8. He was telling parables, and people were listening. 

"On one of those days," one of those ordinary teaching and preaching days, on which no one expected anything different to occur, something dramatically different happened. Jesus said, "Let's get in the boat." When they did, the action started. As those disciples climbed into the boat that day, did they expect Jesus to demonstrate His command over the wind and the sea? Of course not. Did they expect Him to radically change their understanding of who He was? Certainly not. It was just an ordinary day, and yet, on an ordinary day, everything changed. 

Most of the time, our lives are filled with ordinary. We go about our routines with no expectation of something extraordinary happening. It is easy to forget that the simplest act of obedience, that simple "getting in the boat" at Jesus' command, can change everything. Before we know it, we can find ourselves in a fierce storm and, equally as quick, find that our Lord is Master even of our storm. In an instant, He can change our understanding of Him forever. It all begins with that very small step into the boat. 

As we go about our ordinary days, let's watch for those small steps of obedience, and be quick to take them. They just might lead us to the biggest adventure of our lives. 

Pray today that we and our loved ones will recognize the call to the small steps and be quick to obey. 

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Link to last night's post: http://leannahollis.blogspot.com/2014/08/thankful-for-hard-days.html

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We are still praying for Hamas this week, as well as for the peace of Israel. One thing I'm praying for the leaders of Hamas is not only conviction and transformation but weariness in fighting and a desire to do good rather than further destruction.