![\"Daytona](\"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/08\/Daytona-Beach-021m.jpg\")
<\/a>\u201cThat same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.\u201d<\/i> (Matthew 13:1 \u2013 NIV) Now this isn\u2019t the version my Bible study author has chosen to use. In the New American Standard Bible it says, \u201cThat day Jesus went out of the house was sitting by the sea.\u201d<\/i> And if you will permit me to share just one more perspective, The Message says it this way. \u201cAt about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Jesus\u2019 day had been a long one. It was the Sabbath\u2026God\u2019s specified day of rest for Israel. Jesus and His disciples were hungry and picked the heads of grain and ate them. The Pharisees saw this and made a pretty big stink about it. Jesus spent some time teaching\u2026but His day was just beginning.<\/p>\n
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Jesus went in to the synagogue and healed a man\u2019s hand. The Pharisees were looking for a way to accuse Jesus and asked if it were lawful to heal on the Sabbath. Again, Jesus shared thoughts and teaching on the subject\u2026but it only caused the Pharisees to determine to kill Jesus.<\/p>\n
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Knowing what the Pharisees were plotting, Jesus withdrew from the synagogue, but the crowd followed Him. He healed all of the sick and told them not to tell who had healed them\u2026but this was to fulfill prophecy (Isaiah 42:1-4).<\/p>\n
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But Jesus\u2019 healing wasn\u2019t finished for the day. A demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus and he was healed. The Pharisees accused Jesus of being a follower of the prince of demons\u2026but through their accusation, Jesus was able to teach yet again.<\/p>\n
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And if this group of Pharisees weren\u2019t enough to deal with, Jesus\u2019 mother and brothers joined in. They wanted to \u201ctalk\u201d to Jesus. From Mark 3:21 (the parallel passage of Matthew 12), we know that his family thought Jesus was \u201cout of his mind.\u201d According to them, Jesus had lost all control of His mental capacities\u2026but their concern for Jesus was unfounded and He announced who His family was. Those who believed in Jesus and His message.<\/p>\n
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So after this day, it isn\u2019t any wonder that Jesus needed a respite. He sat alone on the beach by the sea. I can imagine Jesus drawn in by the thrill of His creation. Hearing the sound of the waves upon the shore. Allowing the sand to run through His fingers and toes. Feeling the cool breeze blow across His face. Drawing in the aroma of the sea with each breath. Enjoyment of the sound of the birds and other wildlife.<\/p>\n
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I would also venture to guess that Jesus spoke a few words with His Father as well. It had been a difficult day. His enemies were out in full force. His earthly family even seemed to join in. Yes, a few words of encouragement from God were probably needed at this moment. And I must believe that Jesus received exactly what He needed from God at that time.<\/p>\n
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Jesus enjoyed just a few moments of peace and quiet in His Father\u2019s world.<\/p>\n
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There are days when I feel a little like Jesus. Oh I may not have enemies and family members turning against me, but there are days when I feel alone. When I feel like people only want something from me and not willing to give back. When my words don\u2019t seem to make any difference. Yes, there are days I feel a little like Jesus.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s on these days that I must sit by the sea. Of course, I don\u2019t live anywhere near the sea, so I can\u2019t literally be there. But I certainly can be in that place when I\u2019m in God\u2019s presence. I can choose to take a few moments of peace and quiet in my Father\u2019s world. That\u2019s when I am revitalized. When my spirit finds restoration. When I regain strength to move along. When God whispers, \u201cthere is more to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Perhaps Jesus heard these words as well, for it wasn\u2019t long before the crowds found Him. His teaching would continue. In a boat and in the house. To the crowds and His disciples. It was only then that He moved on from there.<\/p>\n
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The lessons we can learn from Jesus here is that we too must find it within ourselves to do God\u2019s work where we are. It may be in our homes or at work. It may be with our children or grandchildren. It may be with our neighbors or a homeless person. Wherever it is, we are to do God\u2019s work until it\u2019s time for us to move on.<\/p>\n
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And when we need a spiritual boost, spend a few moments in God\u2019s presence to gain all we need to keep going.<\/p>\n
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I found great comfort in this passage of Scripture and great joy that my Savior enjoyed the sea as much as I do. I long to be there and I know I will never sit by sea again without remembering Jesus\u2019 precious moments by the seashore.<\/p>\n
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Grace and peace be yours in abundance,<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Donna<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s so interesting to me how God\u2019s Word speaks to people in different ways. How a passage of Scripture seems to be directed at one specific person and then in another verse it speaks to a different person. Sometimes the passage seems relevant to my life while other times I pass over it without much […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,22,296,13,20,15,11,17,25,27,14,9,19,21],"tags":[1574,1577,1575,616,1576,1578],"class_list":["post-2677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asking-god","category-believing-god","category-experiencing-god","category-finding-god","category-hearing-god","category-knowing-god","category-loving-god","category-obeying-god","category-praising-god","category-remembering-god","category-seeking-god","category-sharing-god","category-thanking-god","category-trusting-god","tag-by-the-sea","tag-mark-321","tag-matthew-12","tag-matthew-13","tag-matthew-131","tag-the-parables-of-jesus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2677"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2678,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2677\/revisions\/2678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}