Make It By Faith | Pastor Joe Champion

Devotional

Day 1: When Life Steals Your Trash Cans: Trusting God in Chaos

The theft of trash cans becomes a metaphor for life’s unexpected disruptions. Just as stolen bins leave debris exposed, sudden trials reveal our dependence on control. Jesus invites trust when systems fail, payments lapse, or security vanishes. His grace meets us not in tidy solutions but in the mess of stolen expectations. True rest comes not from perfect circumstances but from anchoring in Christ’s faithfulness amid chaos. [01:18]

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”
(Psalm 46:1–3, ESV)

Reflection: What “trash can moment” has recently disrupted your life? How might Jesus be inviting you to trust His presence more than your ability to manage outcomes?

Day 2: Grace for the Runaway: God’s Second Chances

John Mark’s desertion mirrors our own capacity to abandon purpose. His story proves failure isn’t final. Grace doesn’t merely forgive—it repositions the runaway for greater impact. Like Mark writing Scripture after fleeing ministry, God repurposes our collapse into platforms for His glory. Redemption isn’t about earning back status but receiving grace to labor anew. [04:54]

“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.”
(1 Corinthians 15:10, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you felt disqualified by past failures? How might God’s grace be calling you to steward hard-won wisdom in fresh ways?

Day 3: Evening Storms and Unseen Shores: Growing Through God’s Assignments

Jesus’ command to cross the lake at night defies human logic. Evening storms test whether we’ll let discomfort dictate our obedience. Growth happens not when we avoid turbulence but when we let waves expose shallow faith. The “other side” isn’t just a destination—it’s the revelation of Christ’s authority mid-crisis. [13:59]

“On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling.”
(Mark 4:35–37, ESV)

Reflection: What “evening assignment” feels overwhelming? How might this storm be designed to deepen your reliance on Jesus’ word over visible outcomes?

Day 4: Cushions in the Storm: Resting in God’s Sovereignty

Jesus’ nap on a cushion amid chaos declares divine authority. His rest isn’t indifference but confidence in His Father’s governance. Our panic often stems from assuming God shares our limited perspective. True peace comes not from calm circumstances but from trusting the One who ordains storms for His glory. [26:27]

“And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
(Mark 4:37–39, ESV)

Reflection: Where are you tempted to equate God’s silence with absence? How might His “cushion rest” invite you to trust His control beyond your understanding?

Day 5: Thanksgiving in the Tempest: Worship as Warfare

Complaining assumes God owes comfort; thanksgiving declares His worthiness. The disciples’ accusation (“Don’t you care?”) contrasts with Psalm 50’s call to offer gratitude as sacrifice. Worship realigns our perspective, turning storms into classrooms where we learn Christ’s supremacy. [38:22]

“Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”
(Psalm 50:14–15, ESV)

Reflection: What specific aspect of your current storm can you thank God for today? How might gratitude shift your focus from perceived abandonment to active partnership with His purposes?

Sermon Summary

Mark tells a story carried by two words that rhyme, grace and pace. John Mark deserted in Acts 13, then grace found him, lifted him, and put a pen in his hand. That same grace refuses to sit still, so Mark writes like a soldier on mission, immediately and straightway. Paul’s confession fits this cadence, by the grace of God, I am what I am, and that grace did not lie in vain. Grace sets the heart on the clock. Rest is Christ, not a calendar, and rest in Christ fuels work on earth.

Jesus then sets the scene in Mark 4. On that day, when evening came, he said, let us go to the other side. Evening is when bodies ache, thoughts fray, and a chilled valley settles in. Scripture calls it passing through the Valley of Baca, not camping in it. The call is movement. Not geography, faith. After parables, Jesus gives experience, because ink on a page must become muscle in a storm.

The storm rises, the boat fills, and Jesus sleeps in the stern on a cushion. That detail stings, because sovereignty can look like silence. The disciples melt down and go maximal, do you not care that we are perishing. Jesus rises, rebukes the wind, and says to the sea, hush, be still. Wind and waves obey at once, and a new fear settles in, who then is this. The other side is not just a shoreline, it is a larger trust.

Faith must outlast heaven’s quiet. Moses endured as seeing him who is unseen. First Kings whispers that God often chooses the still small voice over spectacle. So faith leans on his faithfulness, his authority, and his finish. He who starts a work does not misplace it. Faith also receives his ways. Psalm 50 warns that loose talk in the dark picks a fight with God. Accusation turns storms into prisons. Thanksgiving turns storms into classrooms. The mouth that offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors him and sees the salvation of God.

Mark’s pace calls the church to stop paying attention to deceitful spirits and to start paying attention to grace. Jesus still says, let us go. Not alone, together. The cushion in the stern is not neglect, it is a picture of a kingdom that rules waves without panic. The command is simple and costly. Move. Grow. Guard the mouth. Trust the silence. Cross over by faith.

Key Takeaways

1. Grace sets the pace for mission. Grace never parks in neutral. John Mark’s failure did not sideline him, it sped him up, and his book reads like a life that refuses to waste rescue. When grace sits in the heart, labor rises in the hands, not to earn love, but because love already landed. Grace that is not in vain always moves. [04:37]
2. Evening seasons call for movement. Jesus speaks go to the other side when the light is fading, not when energy is high. Scripture names valleys as through places, not home addresses. Fatigue tempts a person to camp, but the word pushes a tired soul to trust that movement is the mercy. [15:30]
3. Some storms are sovereign assignments. Not every squall is self-inflicted, some are classrooms God builds. The cushion in the stern is not indifference, it is authority at rest. The calm that comes at his word re-sizes fear and re-centers faith where it belongs. [26:27]
4. Silence becomes God’s loud classroom. The boat rocks, the voice pauses, and faith learns to read the presence of God without props. Moses endured by seeing the unseen, and Elijah discovered God in a quiet that outlasted fire. Silence does not mean absence, it often signals a deeper kind of nearness. [31:16]
5. Order speech, offer thanks in storms. Psalm 50 warns that accusation and loose talk turn the soul against God’s ways. Thanksgiving is not denial, it is alignment with the Lord who saves in his timing. Gratitude trains the mouth to walk ahead of the mood, and that path often opens to deliverance. [38:08]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:53] - Stolen trash and grace segue
[02:54] - Prayer for the Word
[03:52] - Mark’s backstory and audience
[04:37] - Grace and pace
[07:24] - Urgency, redeemed time, and mission
[13:43] - “Let us go to the other side”
[15:30] - Evenings, valleys, and not stopping
[20:09] - Faith stretched beyond lectures
[25:56] - Sovereign storm, Jesus on a cushion
[27:55] - Hush, be still, instant calm
[29:00] - Storms, meltdowns, and making it by faith
[31:16] - Can you handle the silence
[36:18] - Guard your mouth, offer thanks
[39:55] - Return, trust, and prayer

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Mark 4:35-41 (ESV)
35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Observation Questions

What specific instruction did Jesus give His disciples in Mark 4:35, and what time of day was it?
How did Jesus respond to the storm, and what details about His posture are highlighted in the passage?
What accusation did the disciples make toward Jesus during the storm, and how did He answer their fear? [27:13]
According to the sermon, how does grace relate to urgency in mission? [04:37]

Interpretation Questions

Why might Jesus have chosen to sleep during the storm, and what does His calmness reveal about His authority?
The sermon describes valleys as “through places, not home addresses” (referencing Psalm 84:6). How does this idea connect to Jesus’ command to “go to the other side” in Mark 4:35?
The disciples asked, “Who then is this?” after the storm ceased. How does this question challenge their understanding of Jesus’ identity and power?
How does the sermon’s emphasis on “sovereign silence” (e.g., God’s quietness in trials) deepen our understanding of faith? [31:16]

Application Questions

When have you experienced a spiritual or emotional “evening season” (fatigue, doubt, or darkness)? What practical step can you take to keep moving forward in faith instead of camping in that valley? [15:30]
The sermon warns against accusing God in storms (e.g., “Do you not care?”). How can you guard your heart and words this week when facing difficulty? [36:18]
How might offering thanksgiving—even in a current struggle—shift your perspective from fear to trust? Give a specific example. [38:08]
The disciples’ fear turned to awe when they saw Jesus’ power. What area of your life needs you to exchange anxiety for worship, trusting His authority?
The sermon says, “Faith must outlast heaven’s quiet.” What habit or practice could help you trust God’s faithfulness when He feels silent? [31:16]
How can you actively “set the pace” for mission in your daily life, knowing grace fuels action rather than complacency? [04:37]
Are there areas where you’ve stopped growing spiritually because you assumed God was done working? What step will you take to re-engage with His purpose for you? [24:14]

Sermon Clips

54s

#SovereignSilence

“``Can you handle the sovereignty of silence? You see what they did not think was that God speaks actually through silence. And he's just as sovereign when you're not hearing him. He's just as real when you're not hearing. In fact, he's more real when he's silent. That's faith. When you don't see him, and you don't hear him, and you don't feel him. The reality is is this is what happened in first Kings chapter 19. The Lord wasn't in the earthquake and he wasn't in the fire. He was in the still small voice. So you have to trust him.”

51s

#PurposeInGrace

“How many believe that today you are alive for this reason? There's work to be done. And that God has spared you. God has kept you. God has been good to you. God has been merciful to you. God has given you by his patience the ability to start seeing the way that you should be seeing. You start living the way that you're supposed to be living. And what Paul says is, I don't want to take this grace. I don't wanna just say, I'm under the grace of God, the mercy of God, the patience of the compassion of God. Or if you will, I didn't experience God's great divine eraser over my life so that I would go back and do the same things that I used to do. I wanna live a life like Jesus that is productive.”

58s

#FaithStretched

“Speaking to one of our team members this morning, Hayden, whose father was diagnosed with a brain tumor, who since Easter has not been able to get out of bed. And as his father is at home with his mother in the Dallas area and he's here this morning and as he travels frequently to be with his dad who's bedridden. I asked him this morning, said, Hayden, what are you learning? He says, I'm learning that God stretches our faith. I pray that this morning he stretches your faith. He takes you to another level of faith, another side of his glory, another side of what it means to trust. God is never going to allow you to just live in a valley.”

69s

#RestInJesus

“It's important for you to understand something. We rest in heaven. My pastor used to speak to me on this particular angle and truly we believe in Sabbath and truly we believe in rest and we truly believe that it is one of the principles and the commands of God. But when you come to the old testament or the new testament, our rest is in Jesus. Paul the apostle says, rest is not in a day, it's in a person. When people say, pastor Joe, I need my Sabbath rest. Jesus being your rest every day is your rest. When you walk with Christ, you are in rest. How many know days don't necessarily give you rest? It's not a calendar. It's not something that you can find in this time. It's something that is timeless. To be truly at peace or at rest is to be in Christ. so, he would say to me, Joe, we work on earth, we rest in heaven.”

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Make It By Faith | Pastor Joe Champion | June 28, 2026