Don't Believe the Storm (Wk 1)

Week 1: Paul & Loneliness

How many of you love storms? How many of you hate storms?

Like, when that tornado warning sounds on your phone?

I was fascinated and scared all at once as a 9 year old

Mom & dad coming home from being out with friends

Some of y’all are all about disaster

Chicago tornado siren

However… the truth is, when storms get ugly they can be scary!

77 people lost their lives to Hurricane Laura

Storms happen in our lives in many different ways. Not all of them are weather related. Relational storms, emotional storms, mental health storms

Did you know there were people in Scripture who were afraid of storms too? Yes- we think of the disciples afraid in the boat. But there’s more.

Biblical truth: Elijah was suicidal. David was depressed. Moses was anxious. Paul was alone in prison... but God set them free. He used their mess and made it into a message.

God can turn your worst seasons around when you choose to worship Him in the middle of the storm. In this four-week series, we bring taboo topics like suicide and mental health into the light allowing students to find freedom in Christ.

Maybe you’re walking through a time right now where you’re facing some storms in your life. Tonight, I believe Scripture is going to show us the key to making it through every storm in our lives safely. Tonight we are talking about loneliness.

Read Matthew 8:23-27

Following Jesus doesn’t mean storm-free. Storms can prove genuineness of faith. 1 Peter 1:7

1 Peter. Life is tough.

Disciples probably did everything in their power to save themselves.. Beyond the point of exhaustion, yet too afraid and keyed up to sleep. Been there?

Then, at the height of desperation, they turn to Jesus.

They find that God is good. He can calm storms. He can use storms.

Consider: What does this mean for us today?

Jesus can calm any storm in our lives — even the ones that seem are going to wipe us out completely. He especially calms the storms within.

Read Acts 16:16-28 — Quickly summarize the series of events leading up to this Scripture. Paul radically encountered God, his life was transformed, and he had made it his mission to spread the gospel even if it meant he was persecuted for it.

This wasn’t just any jail that Paul was thrown into. This wasn’t “rec time at 2, free time at 3, visitation at 5. Burgers n’ dawgs for supper at 6.” No- this was the deepest dungeon. Alcatraz

In the prison, Paul and Silas were in a completely hopeless situation. How lonely do you think they were

Everyone they had ever known and loved was on the outside, but they were trapped in the deepest dungeon, seemingly abandoned by God, all because they were doing God’s work.

If these godly, faithful men of God felt trapped and abandoned, how much more so might we at times?

This is one of the loneliest places a person can get...but Paul and Silas chose to take their eyes off their own loneliness and praise God.

They could’ve become bitter. They could have blamed God.

Like the disciples, they were unable to sleep. But rather than worrying and anxiously dwelling on their loneliness and issues, they chose to turn to God.

In the worst possible of situations, they sang praises to God. And the power of praise shook the prison, opened the doors, and broke the chains... not just from Paul and Silas, but from every prisoner.

Praising God does not depend on circumstances. Phil. 4:4

Sad, miserable, lonely Christians do not need their situations to change. They need a change in the one who controls their life. Is it you? Is it Satan? Is it others? Or is it Jesus? Spirit-controlled life

They faced a similar storm to what all of us has faced at some point in our lives — the storm of loneliness, but they knew a simple truth that carried them through...

Jesus will be with you in the storm.

Collide: How do we apply this in our lives?

Read Deuteronomy 31:8 — We can face the storm of loneliness in our lives because we know the truth — we are never truly alone when we walk with God. He is always with us.

When your heart sinks & it seems like your life is falling apart, remember: God is with you, and He will never leave you alone in the storm.

When all else is stripped away… you are freed up to feel God’s presence more profoundly and intensely

“No, Samantha, God hasn’t forsaken you. You just got your iPhone taken away and been off Insta for 2 1/2 hours”

Yes- you lost your loved one and won’t see them again this side of heaven. All your “friends” have scattered and left you alone. But God hasn’t scattered. He hasn’t left.

@ college. Away from Elle. I struggled making meaningful connections.

Found God in His Word and in community of believers.

Are you facing the storm of loneliness right now? This may be a time when it seems like you’re alone, but God wants to show you that He will never abandon you.

Application: Praise God even when you feel completely alone. He will show you that He never has and never will leave you lonely.

When loneliness settles in, where do you run? Run to Him. Meet Him in His Word.

How do we respond to the message? • Altar moment: Tonight, if you’ve been facing the storm of loneliness in your life, take some time to praise God — He wants to break off every chain in your life and show you that He will never leave you alone.