Staying Anchored In A Shaking World

Feel free to use the personal illustrations, change them to fit anyway you like..

Picture this: you’re working a shift as a firefighter. The call comes in—a house fire with flames showing. As you roll toward the scene, you know that people are depending on you to help bring control to the chaos. Your crew is trained, prepared, and ready to face the dragon head-on. But, despite all your training, there’s still that moment where you wonder, will I be able to do enough to save everyone that is in danger?

The feeling of being thrown into the chaos but finding strength in your training—is similar to what Jesus was preparing His disciples for in Mark 13. In the scripture today, Jesus warns His disciples of impending destruction and turmoil to come. The disciples were stunned & shocked the same as we might be when the foundations of our lives begin to crack. But Jesus goes a little farther, He urges them to be ready, not to be alarmed, and to stay anchored in faith.

That’s the mindset we need as we get into this scripture today and begin to look at what Jesus is calling us to do when life feels out of control.

1. The Disciples were shocked (Mark 13:1-2) Then as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Teacher, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!” And Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

The disciples saw the Temple as a symbol of God’s enduring presence—a solid foundation for their faith and community. When Jesus told them of its coming destruction, it shook them to their very core.

I want you to Think of something in your life that feels immovable—a familiar routine, a relationship, or a tradition that you cherish. Maybe it’s getting up and going to work every day , or a friendship with someone that you’ve had since childhood, or getting together with the whole family on holidays… Now Imagine it gone… How does it make you feel? Does it make your life feel a little unstable, like you’re drifting down the river without a paddle and no anchor to throw out?

Jesus wants us to examine the foundations we rely on. Are we trusting in things that, even though they are important, are ultimately only temporary? Or are we grounded in our faith, are we anchored to God, whose presence is eternal?

2. Signs of the Times (Mark 13:3-8) Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked Him privately, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign when all these things will be fulfilled?” And Jesus, answering them, began to say: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and will deceive many. But when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be troubled; for such things must happen, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows.

There are going to be False Prophets and Deception… Jesus gives the warning… that false messiahs and deception are coming. Think about it, in today’s world we have an abundance of voices telling us where to find happiness and where to find security, everyone from social media influencers to political leaders are telling us what we need to do and where we need to go in order to find what we are seeking, to find what we need to make us feel happy and secure. But I gotta tell you something… not all of these voices speak the truth…

When I was still on the job as a firefighter anytime, we responded to a major emergency, whether it was a fire, Haz-Mat incident or a rescue, we responded with multiple teams and sometimes multiple agencies, all trying to handle the situation or mitigate the incident. But if everyone was giving contradictory orders CHAOS would reign. But In those situations, you rely on the chain of command, and an Incident Commander who was the trusted voice to give direction and coordination to everyone involved...That voice was the anchor we relied on… In the same way, God’s voice is the anchor in the chaos, and His voice, His direction is what guides us through life’s emergencies.

And the Wars, Rumors of Wars, and Natural Disasters; The Conflict, natural disasters, and other crises we face today are unsettling, and we see plenty of them in today's world.