January 10, 2013

THE STORM SUBDUED, HOPE RESTORED

Genesis 8

Randi Wideman
Thursday's Devo

January 10, 2013

Thursday's Devo

January 10, 2013

Central Truth

Even when the storm rages, our all-powerful, fully loving, heavenly Dad never takes His eyes off of us!

Key Verse | Genesis 8:1

But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that were with him in the ark; and God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the water subsided. (Genesis 8:1)

Genesis 8

The Flood Subsides

But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided. The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, and the waters receded from the earth continually. At the end of 150 days the waters had abated, and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. And the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.

At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made and sent forth a raven. It went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the earth. Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground. But the dove found no place to set her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her and brought her into the ark with him. 10 He waited another seven days, and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark. 11 And the dove came back to him in the evening, and behold, in her mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth. 12 Then he waited another seven days and sent forth the dove, and she did not return to him anymore.

13 In the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried from off the earth. And Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and behold, the face of the ground was dry. 14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth had dried out. 15 Then God said to Noah, 16 “Go out from the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons' wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh—birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth—that they may swarm on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons' wives with him. 19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by families from the ark.

God's Covenant with Noah

20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And when the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse 1 8:21 Or dishonor the ground because of man, for the intention of man's heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. 22 While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”

Footnotes

[1] 8:21 Or dishonor

Dive Deeper | Genesis 8

This crazy sad, yet unbelievably hopeful story of Noah is one of my favorites, and one my heart has thought about many times over the past year. I started chemotherapy for breast cancer exactly one year ago today. I remember feeling so overwhelmed by the storm that raged around me. I felt that my world had been flooded, and the rain was pouring down, and I cried to the Lord for it to stop! I'm sure Noah felt the same way as he looked out his window on the ark and all he could see was rain covering the world he once knew. Like Noah, I had no idea what my future held, I just knew Who held it. So, on the days when sickness flooded by body, I had to cling to my Heavenly Dad and completely trust His plans for my life.

In the middle of my storm, Psalm 145:18-19 comforted my heart:

"The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He will also hear their cry and will save them.''

How great is that truth, y'all? No matter what storm rages around us, God always hears our cries. He is ever near, and He wants to fulfill our desires! That is why I love the first verse of Genesis 8: "God remembered Noah . . . and the water subsided." God never takes His everloving eyes off of us! He knows exactly the storm we are in and how flooded our lives may feel.

Just as God looked down at His precious Noah, God knows exactly where His precious children are right now. God promises, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5b, ESV) Our Hero never leaves us, and He's with us for every second that the storm rages! And then just when we need our hope restored, He sends us an olive branch to show that there is life after this storm. And not just a meaningless, empty life, but a full, abundant life (John 10:10)!

Discussion Questions

1. Are you in the middle of a storm right now? What is it? Who do you need to share it with?

2. Do you trust that God knows exactly where you are and has good plans for your life even though you're in the middle of your storms? Read Jeremiah 29:11-13.

3. Are you anchoring yourself to truth?

4. Have you seen any "olive branches" lately? Have you thanked God for them?