WHO PUSHES YOUR SWING

                                WHO PUSHES YOUR SWING?
      Children love to swing. There's nothing like it. Thrusting your feet
toward the sky, leaning so far backward that everything looks upside down.
Spinning trees, a stomach that jumps into your throat. Ahhh, swinging...
      I learned a lot about trust on a swing. As a child, I only trusted
certain people to push my swing. If I was being pushed by people I trusted,
(like Dad or Mom), they could do anything they wanted. They could twist me,
turn me, stop me...I loved it! I loved it because I trusted the person
pushing me. But let a stranger push my swing (which often happened at
family reunions and Fourth of July picnics), and it was hang on baby! Who
knew what this new comer would do? When a stranger pushes your swing, you
tense up, ball up, and hang on.
     It's no fun when your swing is in the hands of someone you don't know.
     Remember when Jesus stilled the storm in Matthew 8? The storm wasn't
just a gentle spring rain. This was a storm. Matthew calls the storm a
"seismos,"  which is the Greek word for earthquake. The waves in this
earthquake were so high that the boat was hidden. The sea of Galilee can
create a vicious storm...
     No, sir, this was no spring shower. This was a storm deluxe. It was
frightening enough to scare the pants (or robes) off of a dozen disciples.
Even veteran fishermen like Peter knew this storm could be their last. So,
with fear and water on their faces, they ran to wake up Jesus.
    They ran to do what? Jesus was asleep? Waves tossing the boat like
popcorn in a popper, and Jesus was asleep? Water flooding the deck and
soaking the sailors, and Jesus was in dreamland? How in the world could he
sleep through a storm?
    Simple. He knew who was pushing the swing.
    The disciples' knees were knocking because their swing was being pushed
by a stranger. Not so with Jesus. He could find peace in the storm.

    We live in a stormy world. At this writing, wars rage at both
hemispheres of our globe. World conflict is threatening all humanity. Jobs
are getting scarce. Money continues to get tight. Families are coming apart
at the seams.
    Everywhere I look, private storms occur. Family deaths, strained
marriages, broken hearts, lonely evenings. We must remember who is pushing
the swing. We must put our trust in Him. We can't grow fearful. He won't
let us stumble.
    Who pushes your swing? In the right hands, you can find peace...even in
the storm.