Life brings storms. Some storms come suddenly. Some build slowly over time. Some are caused by circumstances beyond our control. Some are the result of human choices. Some are allowed by God to strengthen, refine, and prepare us. And some storms are sent by the enemy to stop, overthrow, or derail us from God’s purpose.
Navigating the Storms of Life
In this series, Navigating the Storms of Life, we are looking at three types of storms believers may encounter:
1. Storms the enemy sends.
2. Storms circumstances create.
3. Storms God allows.
Each storm must be discerned and navigated differently. Think about driving in different kinds of storms. If you are driving through a severe rainstorm, you respond one way. If you are caught in an Arizona dust storm, you handle it differently. If you are driving through a snowstorm, that requires another kind of response altogether.
Spiritually, the same principle applies. Knowing what kind of storm you are in helps determine how you navigate it.
While we naturally want to avoid trials and storms, they are part of life. Yet God uses every circumstance to strengthen our faith and deepen our trust in Him. Storms can hinder us, but they can also propel us toward destiny if we learn to trust God through them.
Some storms serve as obstacles on the path to destiny. Other storms produce growth we would not have experienced otherwise. We love sunny days, but storms bring the rain—and rain produces growth.
Storms the Enemy Sends
In this first article, we are focusing on the storms the enemy sends.
When the enemy sends a storm to stop, overthrow, or derail us from God’s purpose, we overcome by resting in Christ’s victory, standing on God’s Word, praying with authority, and speaking peace into the chaos.
Kingdom Opportunity in Troubled Times
We live in a complex world and challenging times. That almost feels like an understatement. Wars, economic pressures, social unrest, disease, violence, fear, and uncertainty surround us. Yet Kingdom opportunities are available right now, regardless of global conditions.
God is the great “I Am,” not the great “I was.”
The condition of the world does not cancel the activity of God. The darkness of the hour often reveals the brightness of the Church’s assignment. Jesus is still Jesus. The gospel is still the gospel. His Kingdom is still advancing. His name is still above every name. At the name of Jesus, every knee will bow. Of His Kingdom there will be no end.
Ecclesiastes 11:4 says in the Living Bible:
“If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.”
That is a word for many of us. If we wait until everything is easy, clear, safe, convenient, funded, supported, and predictable, we may never obey what God has already spoken.
Timing matters. Preparation matters. But believers must learn to live by divine initiative and expectancy. We are called to live steadfast in God’s promises and expectant of His care, provision, protection, and unfailing love.
Storms are real, but storms do not get the final word over the people of God.
So here is a question worth asking: Where have I been waiting for perfect conditions before obeying what God has already spoken?
Maybe God has put a dream in your heart. Maybe He has called you into a ministry assignment, a profession, a place of service, or a step of faith. Yes, there may be preparation. Yes, timing matters. But if you wait too long, you can miss a window of opportunity.
There are moments in God’s purposes that must be recognized and embraced.
Esther: Positioned for Such a Time as This
Esther faced that kind of moment.
She went from obscurity into the king’s palace. Her cousin Mordecai helped guide her, and suddenly she found herself positioned in a place of influence and favor. She obtained favor with those around her and eventually with the king himself.
But then a crisis came. Her people, the Jewish people, were facing destruction. Esther could have remained hidden in the comfort and security of the palace. But Mordecai challenged her. He reminded her that perhaps she had come into the kingdom “for such a time as this.”
Esther recognized that her comfort and security had actually positioned her to help others. The favor given to her was not merely for her own protection; it was for a purpose. She called for prayer and fasting. Then she made that courageous declaration: “If I perish, I perish.”
She risked everything, and God brought great deliverance.
The same challenge stands before us today. There are two spiritual kingdoms at work around us: God’s Kingdom of light, love, truth, and life, and Satan’s kingdom of darkness, death, destruction, and deception.
We see this conflict played out through wars, famines, disease, genocide, injustice, oppression, and evil systems. Yet we must remember that no matter how chaotic the world seems, God has never lost control of planet earth.
Jesus has defeated Satan and his demonic powers. Yet until Christ returns and fully consummates His Kingdom, we continue to battle spiritual forces. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6 to put on the whole armor of God so that we may be able to stand in the evil day.
The child of God is united with Jesus and His victory. We do not fight for victory; we fight from victory. We live from Christ’s victory—from heaven toward earth.
Esther became an instrument of light in darkness. In the same way, the Church is called to arise in our day, despite global conditions, to reach humanity with the good news of Jesus Christ.
What comfort, security, favor, or influence has God given you that may actually be an assignment for others?
Risk-Based Discipleship
Jesus called us to follow Him. Period.
Being His disciple implies risk, not self-preservation. We like comfort. We like predictability. We like security. But security and opportunity rarely coexist.
Jesus calls us to risk-based discipleship, which often stands in opposition to comfort and security.
One of the greatest challenges for the Western church is that we have so many comforts, safety nets, and protections that we can become more committed to preserving comfort than obeying Christ. We can remain in the comfort of the palace while God is calling us into the highways, byways, and difficult places of the earth.
Am I asking Jesus to preserve my comfort, or am I willing to follow Him into opportunity even when risk is involved?
Jim and Elisabeth Elliot
I was reminded of Jim and Elisabeth Elliot. In the mid-1950s, Jim Elliot and other missionaries went into the Ecuadorian jungle to reach an unreached people group. Jim was martyred by the very people he was trying to reach in 1956.
His wife, Elisabeth, was left with their daughter, Valerie, who was only ten months old when Jim was killed. I cannot imagine the grief, pain, questions, and confusion she must have carried.
Yet Elisabeth did not allow bitterness to define her. She pressed on. She learned the language. She returned to minister among the very people connected to that mission field. Eventually, many in that tribe came to Christ.
Elisabeth Elliot once said:
“Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them.”
That is powerful. Faith does not mean you will never have questions. Faith does not mean you will never grieve, hurt, or wonder why something happened. But faith knows where to take the questions. Faith takes them to God instead of into fear, bitterness, accusation, or unbelief.
When questions rise in your storm, do you take them into fear, bitterness, and accusation—or do you take them to God?
The enemy is the accuser of the brethren. No doubt he was stirring up opposition against that mission effort, trying to stop the proclamation of Christ. It was a storm that the enemy sent. Yet God turned it around, and a whole people group was reached with the gospel.
Elisabeth could have gotten bitter. Instead, she got better.
That is one of the decisions we must make in a storm. Will I blame God? Will I fall into fear? Will I get bitter? Or will I become stronger in faith?
The Storm the Enemy Sends
The storm the devil sends is an attack designed to stop you, overthrow you, and derail you from God’s purpose for your life.
The enemy does not merely want to inconvenience you. He wants to interrupt destiny. He wants to stop God’s assignment in your life. He wants to bring fear, confusion, discouragement, destruction, and even premature death if he can.
But we must not become devil-centered. We must remain Jesus-centered.
The enemy is real, but he is defeated. Jesus has conquered Satan and every demonic power. The believer must learn to use the authority Christ has given us, to fight the good fight of faith, to run the race set before us, and to say no to the powers of darkness when they confront us.
Jesus and the Disciples in the Storm
Mark 4:35–41 says:
“On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, ‘Let us cross over to the other side.’ Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, ‘Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?’
Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, ‘Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?’ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, ‘Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!’” NKJV
Jesus had already given them a directive: “Let us cross over to the other side.”
That matters.
God had spoken. Jesus had given direction. They were not in rebellion; they were in obedience. Yet the storm arose in the middle of their obedience.
There were people on the other side who needed deliverance, healing, and the good news of the Kingdom. In Mark 5, Jesus would encounter the demonized man in the region of the Gadarenes. The storm came before the deliverance. The opposition arose before the breakthrough.
Experienced fishermen were in that boat. They had been on the water many times. They had seen storms before. But this storm was different. It was severe enough to make experienced fishermen think they were going to die.
Have you ever found yourself in a storm unlike anything you had ever faced before?
A storm like that can cause fear to rise quickly. It can cause you to question what God said. It can cause you to wonder whether Jesus cares.
The disciples said, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”
In other words, “Jesus, the waves are sinking my boat. Why are You sleeping?”
We may not say it exactly that way, but many of us have felt it.
“Lord, don’t You see what is happening?”
“Lord, don’t You care?”
“Lord, why aren’t You moving faster?”
“Lord, why does it feel like You are silent?”
But Jesus was not anxious. He was asleep on a pillow.
In the presence of chaos, Jesus was so confident in the Father’s promise and power that He remained at rest. The peace within Him was greater than the storm around Him.
The story contrasts the disciples’ panic with Jesus’ rest. He was at rest; they were in distress. Their perspective was wrong.
The same can happen to us. A lack of trust in God’s promises can lead us to think we are going under instead of going over. But if God has given you a directive, you can stand on His Word.
What has the storm caused you to believe about God that contradicts what Jesus has already spoken?
Jesus Rebuked the Storm
Mark 4:39 says Jesus “rebuked” the wind and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!”
The Greek word translated “rebuked” is the same word used when Jesus dealt with unclean spirits in Mark 1:25 and Mark 3:12. This suggests that demonic powers may have been behind the storm.
The disciples were astonished and asked, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”
In first-century Jewish culture, control over nature was attributed exclusively to God. The disciples knew this was not normal. The storm signaled a hopeless situation. They were powerless to stop it. Then Jesus dramatically intervened, showing that God is in control even when the enemy sends the storm.
Jesus’ internal reality—the rule of the Kingdom of God—was greater than the storm around Him. From a place of rest and trust in the Father, Jesus rose with authority over the wind and the sea.
That is important for us. The authority that belongs to Christ has been given to His people. Jesus said, “Go therefore.” He also said, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
We do not operate from a formula. It is not about saying Psalm 91 enough times or trying to perform religious techniques. It is about knowing Christ, knowing His Word, knowing His authority, and standing in faith.
When you are confident in the authority you have in Christ, you can stand firm no matter what is happening around you.
Is the storm around you becoming greater in your mind than the Kingdom reality within you?
Haiti: Street Preaching and the Witch Doctor
I remember an experience in Haiti many years ago. We were there ministering, holding nighttime meetings where thousands would gather. We preached the gospel, prayed for the sick, and ministered to those oppressed by demonic powers.
During the day, we would break into groups and go into the streets to preach, invite people to the meetings, and share Christ.
One day, a couple of others and I were in an area of town. I began preaching with an interpreter, and a crowd of about 100 people started gathering. They were listening, and things were going well.
Then, around the corner came a man dressed in a full chicken suit. I mean the beak, the outfit, everything. You could only see the slits of his eyes. And he had a whip.
This was not just a strange man in a costume. He was a local witch doctor, and he was angry. In Haiti, voodoo and witchcraft are very real. Around Mardi Gras season, groups connected with witchcraft would go to businesses and threaten curses unless money was given. This man was angry because we were interrupting his business.
He came cracking that whip, and the crowd started getting nervous. Some began to leave.
Now, I am not that big of a guy, but I know who is bigger!
I stepped down, and another man with me, Ted, came down too. Ted was a Holy Ghost maniac, praying loudly in the Spirit. I looked at that man in the chicken outfit and said, “In the name of Jesus, you will not torment us. You will not torment these people. You will not interrupt this meeting any longer. You may go now.”
He cracked the whip a couple more times. Ted stood there praying in tongues. I stood firm and said, “Go in Jesus’ name.”
I did not know whether he understood English, but I knew the spirit realm understood the authority of Jesus’ name.
Finally, he turned around, cracked the whip one more time, and left. The people began cheering and shouting. I got back up and continued preaching, and several people gave their lives to Christ.
That was a storm the enemy sent. It was not a massive storm, but it was a storm. The enemy tried to interrupt the proclamation of the gospel. But when you know who you are in Christ, you can stand firm.
Authority does not always have to be loud. It does need to be firm.
No weapon formed against you shall prosper. Isaiah says that every tongue that rises against you in judgment shall be condemned. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord.
We are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against powers and principalities. Recognize when the enemy sends a storm, and learn how to pray and stand in the authority God has given you.
How to Navigate a Storm the Enemy Sends
So how do we navigate the storm the enemy sends?
First, rest in Christ’s victory.
Second, stand on God’s Word.
Third, pray with authority.
Fourth, speak peace into the chaos.
Jesus challenged His disciples by asking, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”
He confronted their focus. Their attention had shifted from His word to the storm. He had already told them they were going to the other side. His word was sufficient leverage over the storm.
What word has God spoken to you? What promise has He given you? What assurance from Scripture can you stand on in the middle of the storm?
Psalm 50:15 says:
“Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” NKJV
That verse applies to every storm.
Sometimes you may not know at first whether the storm is from the enemy, circumstances, or something God is allowing. You can still call upon Him. “Lord, I do not fully understand what is happening, but I need Your help. Give me strength. Give me vision. Give me a strategy. Show me what to pray.”
When the enemy sends a storm, do not merely react. Pray. Pray according to God’s Word and His revealed will.
Disease, financial attack, theft, violence, evil, and destruction are works of hell. The follower of Christ has authority in Jesus’ name.
What promise from God’s Word should you be standing on in this present storm?
God Redeems a Stolen Truck
Before going to Haiti as missionaries, we were trying to sell a little Nissan pickup truck. God had clearly directed us to go to Haiti—to cross over, if you will. We needed to sell that truck so the proceeds could help support the mission work.
We took it to a Christian mechanic in Florida to get some repairs done before selling it. The mechanic assured us it would be safe over the weekend. Famous last words.
Someone broke into the shop and stole our truck.
When we heard the news, we knew immediately this was the enemy. We were trying to sell that truck to help fund gospel work. So we began to pray, and others joined us in prayer.
A couple of days later, the truck was recovered, but it was damaged. The steering column was torn up. The radio was ripped out. There was cosmetic damage. It needed more repairs, and it looked like we were going to lose money.
The insurance amount did not seem like it would be enough. We kept praying.
We stood on God’s Word. Philippians 4:19 says:
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” NKJV
We prayed, “Lord, You said You would supply all our needs. This truck was part of the provision for us to go to the mission field. We need You to intervene.”
Then we received a call from the mechanic. Someone had walked into the shop and asked about the little red truck. The mechanic explained that a young couple was preparing to sell it because they were going to the mission field.
The man asked how much we wanted for it and said he would pay cash right then—even though the truck was still damaged. Between what he paid and what the insurance company provided, we ended up with more than we would have received before it was stolen!
The enemy sent a storm to stop and derail us. But God redeemed it.
Always remember: God is in every storm, even if the enemy has the winds howling.
Where have you assumed loss is inevitable, when God may already be working redemption into the storm?
Speak to the Situation
When the enemy sends a storm, find the Word God is giving you and speak to the situation.
Jesus spoke to the wind and waves. He spoke to trees that did not produce. He spoke to spirits invisible to the human eye. Your words have power when they agree with God’s Word and flow from faith in Christ’s authority.
Thoughts become “things” when they take on the power of fear.
A child may imagine a monster in the corner of the room. To that child, it feels real. Adults can do the same thing. Fear takes hold of our imagination, and suddenly the problem looms large while Jesus seems small.
But the enemy is defeated. Do not empower him through fear-filled agreement.
Jesus said that if we have faith as a mustard seed, we can speak to the mountain. Mountains represent those chaotic impossibilities that seem immovable. Yet Jesus taught us to speak in faith.
Ephesians 3:20 says:
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.”
God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think. But notice: according to the power that works in us.
He is waiting for His people to agree with His purposes on earth, to pray His purposes, and to declare His will with love, humility, confidence, and authority.
We can pray over cities. We can pray over nations. We can pray over the Middle East. We can pray over gangs, drug trafficking, violence, and evil systems. We can say, “Lord, let Your will be done. Let Your Kingdom come. We bind the powers of darkness in Jesus’ name. We pray for souls. We pray for deliverance. We pray for peace. Pour out Your Spirit.”
What if we prayed like that more often and actually believed it?
What if instead of only reading about Pentecost, we lived in the power of the Spirit?
What if instead of only reading about revival, we began to embody revival?
It starts with knowing who you are in Christ and walking in it.
What have you been saying about your storm, and does it agree with heaven or with fear?
Closing Exhortation
When it is a storm the enemy sends, realize this: God did not send the attack, but He will work through the storm if you trust Him.
Keep your focus on Jesus.
Jesus is not anxious in your storm. He is at rest. He is present. He is Lord. His Word has authority over the wind and waves.
Do not let the storm redefine God’s character.
Do not let the problem become bigger than God.
Do not let fear become your internal reality.
Rest in Christ’s victory. Pray the Word. Pray with authority. Speak peace in Jesus’ name.
Be confident when you pray according to God’s Word and revealed will. Ignore the storm’s intimidation. God desires to work through you according to His resurrection life within you.
Prayer
Lord, I speak peace over those who are in a storm right now.
Where there is fear, replace it with faith and peace. Where families are struggling with provision, I ask You to provide. You are our provider. You multiplied the loaves and the fish, and You are able to make a way where there seems to be no way.
For those deeply concerned about world affairs, finances, family, health, or the future, I speak peace in Jesus’ name. Lord, You have this. You are not asleep in the cosmic boat of the universe. You are fully aware, fully present, and fully working.
For those who believe they are under an attack of the enemy, I stand in the authority of the name of Jesus Christ—not merely as a pastor, but as a brother in Christ. The authority comes from You, Lord. In Jesus’ name, we bind the powers of darkness that have come against them. We bind lies, fear, worry, torment, and demonic oppression. We speak peace, breakthrough, healing, wellness, confidence, and courage in Jesus’ name.
And for anyone who has never surrendered their life to Jesus, today is a good day to do that. Pray simply: “Lord, I may not understand everything, but I surrender my life to You. I believe You died and rose again. I believe You shed Your blood for me. I trust You, Jesus, and I will cling to You no matter what.”
Faith dispels chaos, and peace follows.
Can you trust Him in this hour?
Amen.
