Apostle Andre Pelser
 22 June 2008, 10 AM

Hilton was playing a hockey and rugby tournament in Durban. There were floods in Durban at that time. Cars, buses, houses and things were taken into the floods. On the day that we left for Durban, we flew and a lot of boys from Cape Town of different schools, went to the tournament. When we came in to Durban there was a torrential downpour and hurricane strong winds and as we just about got onto the tarmac the plane couldn't land so we took off again, because the water was flooding the runway. We flew back to Johannesburg, waited there on the runway for an hour, we flew back to Durban trying to land again, but this time it was harder, we took off again and flew back to Johannesburg. We got off at the airport in Johannesburg and 6-8 planes that wanted to land at Durban and couldn't. One plane tried, but crashed. Johannesburg airport was flooded with people. It was chaos. In a situation like that you need clear instructions. There are some people who cooperate very well and wait for instructions and then you have the usual group who like to complain about everything. We waited there and eventually they cleared the runway we went to Durban again. Some people stayed behind in Johannesburg. When we got to Durban it was pouring. Nola started praying for the boys, those who stayed behind and those who came with the chartered planes. As Nola was praying in the car I remembered something.

Many years ago in Australia, I was leaving my office and Percy, who was my associate at that time, were driving. Suddenly the sky turned green and within seconds the hail started falling. The hail stones were so big that people ran for shelter, people ran into bus shelters and stood on seats. We were stuck in traffic right next to the bus shelter. The car was being damaged by the hail, it broke my windscreen. I got mad and rolled down my window and started screaming at the hail. The people in the bus shelter could hear me above the hail. I screamed at the top of my voice, "Hail, stop in Jesus Name!" Within seconds it stopped, as fast as it started. Percy just sat there and said, "I've never seen something like this before. It is like Jesus." I didn't expect it to stop so suddenly.

Jesus when He was in the storm, sleeping at the bottom of the boat on the leather pillow, which means that it is the helmsman pillow. They were in a storm and they thought they were going to perish and the disciples ran to Jesus and woke Him up saying, "don't You care that we are perishing?" Jesus was in the boat, if they perish He would perish, but they didn't care about Him. "Don't You care that we perish?" What is going to happen to Him when they perish? He is in the same boat. They only cared for themselves. Jesus got up and rebuked the storm. The wind and the waves ceased. The picture behind the Greek word for rebuking the storm and the storm obeying Him, is a picture of a master muzzling an ox. When an ox goes wild, not anyone can just go in and muzzle it, it will kill you. Only the master can come, take it, speak to it and muzzle it. So when Jesus rebuked the storm, He muzzled the wild ox, because the ox, the storm, knew who the Master is. Who created the winds and the waves? God through Jesus. Everything was created by Him, through Him and for Him. So when the waves heard His voice they remembered the Masters voice.

There was a very big storm in Durban, so Nola was praying in the car that God must just please stop the rain when the boys land. I remembered the time in Australia when I rebuked the hail storm. I did what I did then, I stuck my head out in the rain and rebuked the storm. And it rained harder. A few moments after, the rain ceased. The storm ceased. They predicted floods for the whole weekend, the whole tour would have been washed out. The storm ceased. When the boys landed, it didn't stop for that landing, it never came again. They played rugby and hockey in beautiful sunlit skies. Nola said to me, "you weren't sent to watch hockey, but to rebuke a storm." Jesus said, "the works that I do you will do also and greater works." Why can we do greater works than Him? He said, "for I go to My Father." You need to get this perspective right. Where did He do all His great works? On earth, so if He is with the Father He can do no more great works. We have to now do it.

There is a time where prayer does not help, Jesus did not pray to the storm to cease. There is a time when you must rebuke. There is a time to scream and there is a time to be silent. I rebuked the storm. But who am I? I am nobody. I am nobody and I am not much. We heard about self-worth last Sunday, but Jesus said that we will do greater works. "These works that I do you shall also do and greater works than these you will do." You can do it too. I am no big deal, I am pretty dour when I am not in a group. I am not a very good conversationalist, I only ask questions. But I love being in crowds and are a different person in front of a crowd. God made me that way. If you would just operate the way God made you, you'll also do greater works in the area of your influence. Your gift makes room for you. Greater works will I do because I believe in Him. We can do nothing, but with Him we can do all things.

What storm is raging in your life today? God wants to stop it. I am going to command it to stop, just as I commanded that flood to stop. I don't care if it is an emotional storm, a storm of sickness, a storm of temptation, a financial storm. I don't care if there is a storm in your relationship or in your business. I don't care if there is a storm in your mind that you can't keep your thoughts together. Some of you are lost in a storm. Some of you have to come back to Jesus. Maybe you are in a storm of sin in your life that you are about to perish in it. It says that if you will not repent, you will likewise perish of your sins. Sin makes you loose direction. Stop sinning and come out of that storm. He is a shelter in the time of storm. Jesus is a rock in a weary land and a shelter in the times of a storm.

You have prayed about these storms so much and nothing has happened, but today we are going to rebuke that. Like He has stopped the hail in Brisbane, like He has stopped the floods this week, He will stop the storms in your life. In the Name of Jesus.

If you do this act of obedience, the storm has to leave. You muzzle the ox, that thing that tries to destroy you. Stand up, raise your hands and raise your voice, at the top of your voice, "storm cease. Storm stop in Jesus Name!" Now start thanking the Lord for what He has done! If He could do it 2000 years ago, His Word is true, He can do it today. It is done!