Anchors in the Storm of Life (Part 2) – Barbara Potts

This is the conclusion of Barbara’s article “Anchors in the Storm of life. If you haven’t a chance to read part 1, you can find it here, Anchors in the Storm of Life (Part 1)

Anchor 5: The deepest darkness cannot overwhelm the Presence, peace, or the love of God.

Verse 5 of Psalm 23:  

“You become my delicious feast even when my enemies dare to fight.
You anoint me with the fragrance of your Holy Spirit;
you give me all I can drink of you until my heart overflows.”

John the Baptist said to those gathered to hear his message of repentance, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Luke 3:16) Jesus is not only our Savior, but the Baptizer of power that the enemy cannot withstand.  

Paul said to the Corinthian Church that the Holy Spirit in us is to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. (2 Corinthians 2:15)

Isaiah speaks for the Lord: “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’(Isaiah 41:10)


Anchor 6: He anoints and empowers me, and surrounds me with His comforting, strengthening, and overwhelming Presence.

Verse 6 of Psalm 23

“So why would I fear the future?
For your goodness and love pursue me all the days of my life.

Then afterward, when my life is through,
I’ll return to your glorious presence to be forever with you!” 

Isaiah prophesies to us: 

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by your name;
You are Mine.
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” (Isaiah 43:1-3)

Psalm 136 is a psalm of thanksgiving to God for His enduring mercy.  It begins with:

“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.”

The Apostle John  tells us of God’s unfathomable love:  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Anchor 7: My future is safe and secure in His goodness and love – and I will be with Him forever! 

In summary, as we embrace these ANCHORS of FAITH we will find stability through the storms of life:

1- Our God is a God of Safety and ABUNDANCE! – With Jesus as my friend and shepherd I will always be safe in his arms and have what I need; even more than enough!

2 – God offers me a quiet place of peace and rest in Him at all times, for His Presence restores and revives my life.  Do I go there often to commune with Him?

3 – God’s pathways bring pleasure and joy, and His Word lights my path with revelation. He leads me on a path of righteousness so I can bring Him praise and honor 

4 – I am empowered by God to endure and prosper in every temptation and trial of life, and to navigate through the deepest darkness.

5 – The deepest darkness cannot overwhelm the Presence, peace, or the love of God.

6 – He anoints and empowers me, and surrounds me with His comforting, strengthening, and overwhelming Presence.

7 – My future is safe and secure in His goodness and love – and I will be with Him forever! 

Abundant Life is Revealed in the Spirit – Karen Austin

When Jesus walked the earth, we read in Scripture there was such division among the people over Him. “So the crowd was divided over Jesus,” Luke 7:43.Some believe He was the Messiah. Otherswere offended by His teaching. They said “How can He say this?” The religious leaders even went so far as to say about ones who followed Him, “They are all cursed”. The people had an understanding of the Bible, but still missed who Jesus was and what He was saying. Unbelievable…but is it really?

Unfortunately, this will be so in our day. There are scriptural truths about to be revealed that some will again say “How can this be true? I believe the Scripture means this…” There will be things that take place that some will cry out, “How can God let his happen?” But what many fail to understand, and honestly have not been taught, is the foundation of His throne is righteousness and justice [Psalm 89:14]. All throughout history, time and time again, God does what He does because of love. He hates evil. We know that the enemy’s goal is to steal, kill and destroy. God is very, very longsuffering giving mankind much time to repent. We, too, are told to hate evil [Psalm 97:10].

Jesus came so that we may have life and life abundantly [John 10:10]. Abundant life does not mean that we have the coolest car on the block. It does not mean that we have a lavish home. Life abundant means life free from the law of sin and death. It means we have eternal life. It means we have our needs met, not our wants. It means walking in wholeness; spirit, soul and body. It means walking in the light as He is in the light. It means hearing and being obedient to His voice. It means being led by His Spirit. We must understand that this life of freedom Jesus paid the price for does not come just because we go to church once a week. It comes because we choose to live a life of obedience and holiness. This is a season where we are seeing the dividing of the wheat and tares and of sheep and goat nations.

Just because our nation was founded upon Christian values established by our founding fathers, does not mean we automatically live in the liberties that were intended. No, we must fight to maintain those freedoms in our nation. So it is spiritually. “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” Galatians 5:1

My brothers and my sisters, we are about to find out who we really are and what God created us to do. We, who yield to the dealing of Holy Spirit, are soon to find out what a major part we are to play in this culmination of history as we know it. The curtain of this new season is being pulled back, ever so slightly. We are getting a glimpse into this new era. Again, some will not understand. Some will be offended. His light of revelation is uncovering hidden truths in His Word, which will reveal not only His majesty, but also our assignment destined from the beginning of time.

As we receive what He is offering us to walk in such as liberty and authority, as we follow Holy Spirit’s leading, we will walk in the powers of the age to come. We will walk upon the road less traveled. We will say to the mountain before us, “Be removed”, and it will move! We will not be ones who will follow Jesus just because of His miracles. But because of our love and passion for Jesus, we will follow Him. Out of that place of being hidden in Him, we will work the greater miracles that Jesus spoke of.

These are days of great darkness, but for us who are willing and obedient, we will walk in days of great light!