Good morning: I came up with a rule last week I want to implement. The rule is, “you must greet the pastor either before service starts or when the service is over. I want to make sure I shake your hand or give you a hug and thank you for worshipping with us. I’m going to have minister Morris give the benediction allowing me to be in the foyer as you leave.

Last week I preached on forgiveness verses unforgiveness. We had a good discussion on the zoom call on Wednesday evening. Many of the storms we face in our lives, not the rain, thunder, and lightening kind of storms, but storms of disagreement and unrepented sin are the result of a root of bitterness that is growing in us because of unforgiveness. If we are not forgiving others, God is not forgiving us. The result of our disobedience are the storms we face.

Hillview Family and Friends!

 Ushers and greeters. We can create an alternate schedule. If anyone is interested, please see LaTanya Dunn.

Funds Summary as of  October 2025  contribution: $11,448.93.  Monthly Budget that needs to be met: $15,417.00.

Sis. Debbie will be having Children’s ministry 1st through 4th Sundays.  On the 1st Sunday the children will  do special projects. Please text Sis. Debbie if your child will not be in attendance. 5th Sunday no children’s ministry. 

Nov 12th Bible Study on Zoom at 6pm. Please let Pastor Dexter know if you will be attending. He will send out the Zoom link via email. 

Nov 15 Management Board Meeting at 9am at Hillview

Nov 23rd– Is our annual Thanksgiving potluck.  Sign up sheet will be available next Sunday Nov 2nd on the Events table.

Nov 27th-Thanksgiving

Nov 29th Women’s Prayer Breakfast

Nov 30th First Sunday of Advent. If you would like to participate in the Advent Readings , please sign up on sign up sheet.  

Hillview will be contributing to The  McKinney Vento efforts to support homeless children  and their families in our area. The goal is to collect personal items for both girls and boys (i.e.: deodorant , shampoo’s, body lotion etc.). There is a box in the foyer for you to drop off your donations. The deadline is Sun  Nov 16th, so we can present  our “gift  of love”  for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Offering Envelopes are located on the wall outside of the sound booth.

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The storms we encounter in our lives have different magnitudes, from a simple sprinkle to a thunderstorm, to a tornado, to a hurricane, or even a blizzard. The magnitude of the storm determines the destruction it will cause. I want us to watch a short video clip of a storm.

We’ve just watched the trailer to the movie “The Perfect Storm” which is based on the true story of the commercial fishing vessel the Andrea Gail. The storm was the result of two weather fronts and a hurricane colliding together to form what was referred to as the perfect storm. This storm happened in October of 1991. The entire crew was lost at sea. That storm might be considered a once in a lifetime occurrence.

As I have already stated, we will have storms in our lives, actual storms where we need to get out our umbrella or put on a raincoat, and storms in the spiritual realms. Ep 6:12 says, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

How will you respond to that once in a lifetime storm that shakes your world?

From our text, Jesus and his disciples have gotten in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. The Sea of Galilee is a large lake. It is 13 miles long and seven miles wide. At its deepest it is between 150 and 200 feet deep. The lake sits 680 feet below sea level and is surrounded by hills. When the cool dry air from the hills comes in contact with the warm moist air from the lake the large temperature and pressure changes can cause violent storms that materialize quickly.

When you are experiencing a storm and you’ve done everything you know to do and the situation doesn’t seem to be improving, panicking seems to be a natural response.

Karen and I were driving back from Colorado from a pastor’s retreat in a snowstorm. The retreat took place the first full week in January. We were driving our car, a red Pontiac Grand Am, but when the wind stirred up the snow you couldn’t make out the red hood of the car. That condition is called whiteout. Karen was driving as she saw other cars that had run off the road. I was giving instructions, but she wasn’t having it. She pulled over and I began to drive but the stress of the moment caused us to pull off at the nearest exit, which was Colby, Kansas, and we checked into a motel to wait the storm out. The next morning, we drove maybe 15 miles and drove out of the snow onto dry roads with no evidence of snow anywhere.

What I find interesting about this trip across the lake during the storm, the disciples were panicking, and Jesus was asleep in the stern of the boat.

Mark 4:37, 38

37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.

38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

Have you ever talked with somebody about a thunderstorm that happened the night before? They respond, “I slept right through it, I didn’t hear a thing.

There is something about having a confidence that prevents you from worrying about your situation because you know you serve a God that is in control of everything.

Mark 4:39-41

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

You might think, of course Jesus would remain calm because of who He was, God’s Son, and drowning wasn’t how He was supposed to die. There are other examples of men being calm while in the mist of spiritual storm.

Acts 12:5- 7

5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance.

7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.

Peter was in prison under heavy guard. When the angel came to release him, he had to be woken up. Peter was able to sleep because he knew his life was in the Lord’s hands.

Acts 16:22-25

22 The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.

23 After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.

24 Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

Instead of complaining about their situation, they were praying and singing hymns. Nobody wants to listen to somebody singing off key. I believe God’s anointing was on Paul and Silas and their voices were angelic as they sang to their God. So-much-so that the other prisoners were listening to them.

We should be striving to constantly be in God’s will in whatever we are doing. Then when the storms of life come, we will be able to rest in God regardless of our circumstance and the result of the storm.

Jesus spoke to the storm, and it obeyed his commands. Then He spoke to the disciples and questioned their faith. Another time He accused them of being ineffective because of unbelief. We must remember that at this time the Holy Spirit was not indwelling believers like He does today. At the time of this lake crossing in the storm the disciples were still finding out who Jesus was. They were awe struck as they looked at Jesus after calming the storm by speaking to it. Mark 4:41 says, “They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

It wouldn’t be long before the disciples found themselves in another storm, but this time Jesus was not in the boat with them.

Mark 6:45-50

45 Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. (They didn’t ask Jesus how He was going to get to Bethsaida)

46 After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land.

48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them,

49 but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out,

50 because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

We’ve seen from scripture how men in the Bible survived storms, both physical and spiritual. What about the storms in your life, marital problems, children problems, emotional problems, financial problems, even church problems.

You probably think subconsciously that Karen and I don’t experience storms in our life like you do. Like we are exempt. Let me share with you some of my storms.

My greatest desire was to be a father. Karen and I were married on May 22, 1976. She became pregnant with our first child in February of 1977. It was an answer to one of my prayers. Yvette was born 3 months pre-mature and only lived 24hours. Karen never got to see her on this side of heaven, but I held her in my hand before she died. I was devasted but I did blame God, I was drawn to God and God’s people who were a source of strength and comfort during a storm. That storm didn’t shipwreck me.

God ultimately blessed our union with three healthy children. We wanted to raise them in a Christian home where both husband and wife were involved in the life of the church. Karen, and I decided to have a last will and testament drawn up designating who should raise our children if something happened to us. This caused a storm because we determined at the time, none of our immediate family could provide the Christian home we wanted our children to be raised in. In most cases the wife went to church, but the husband didn’t. So, we ended up picking a couple that attended church with us. Nothing happened to us, and we weren’t kicked out of the family, but at the time feelings were hurt.

Karen and I enjoyed attending the national church convention in Anderson, Indiana. We were preparing to leave on Saturday morning. On Friday night the car was packed, I even backed the car into the garage, so we had a straight shot leaving out the next morning. At midnight the phone rang. I answered the phone and a police officer on the other end said your son was involved in a serious accident and you need to come to I-635 and Parallel. He had been t-boned by a drunk driver in a pick-up truck. He had a passenger in the car with him, and the police expected one or both to die. God saw things differently and both survived the accident.

I can go on sharing with you how the devil tried to use my children to get to me. He wasn’t successful.

There’s a song that says, “As I look back over my life, and I think things over, I can truly say that I’ve been blessed I have a testimony.”

What about you? If you take Jesus with you, regardless of the storm you encounter, He will be your anchor that foundation that will prevent you from total collapse in your storm. Never leave Jesus at home thinking you won’t need him today. A storm can develop without notice crippling you when you try to stand on your own. Don’t do it.

Study Questions

1. What is the worst physical storm you have experienced?
2. Would you rather battle a physical storm or a spiritual storm?
3. People die from physical storms all the time. Do you think a spiritual attack/storm might also take your life?
4. Spiritual storms are the result of our relationship with Jesus. It is Satan that is attacking us because we love Jesus. Are you prepared to resist the devil?
5. Who provides the best example for you of outlasting a spiritual storm, Jesus or Paul and Silas? Why?
6. Somebody is trying to weather a storm on their own not wanting us to know. Don’t underestimate the power of prayer on your behalf. As we go to prayer this evening if you are willing, tell us how we can pray for you.

Continue to pray for the sick and shut-ins and their caregivers. Prayer is needed for our entire congregation as we are all dealing with spoken and unspoken needs and requests.

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