Reason #47
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 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?”
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” - Mark 4:35-41
I have found myself sailing along through life in calm, still waters. Occasionally, I have experienced some choppy waves that rocked my boat and caused me to get sea sick, but I slapped on a sea-sick patch behind my ear and was able to mask my nauseous feelings. Of course, the boat was rocking but the patch was doing a good job of tricking my body into thinking otherwise and I was able to sail on until smoother waters returned.
In the story above, we see the disciples and Jesus sailing along in smooth waters. I'm sure they were enjoying the mist in their face and beauty of the water as they headed to their destination. Many of these men were fishermen by trade so being on a boat was a very natural thing for them. They probably felt right at home. As they sailed along, a storm popped up. In my opinion, one of the scariest places to be is in the middle of a storm with no land insight. The waves crashed over their boat and threatened their lives. Even though they might have been comfortable sailing, they had no control over their circumstances. They could not stop the boat from being tossed. They could not keep the waves from coming aboard, and they certainly had to way to make sure their boat didn't capsize. These men might have even been strong swimmers, but being thrown into the water with raging and crashing waves doesn't allow one much of a chance for survival.
As these men feared for their lives, they remembered that Jesus was on board. I find it interesting that he was sleeping through the chaos, anyhow, they woke him up seeking his help. Jesus didn't tell them to man up and ride the storm out, he didn't ask them to come back and wake him in 15 minutes because he was still sleepy, he didn't throw them life jackets and tell them to hang on tight, no, he got up and he told the storm it was time to stop. Enough is enough! That's all it took. A word from the Savior and the storm was over.
Storm can pop up unexpectedly. The scariest thing about storms is that we have no control over them. We don't know how long they will last, how much damage they will cause, or how severe they will be. But he knows. Not only does he know, he has the power to determine how long they will last, how much damage will be caused and how severe they will be.
I have been in the disciples' shoes. I was sailing along just fine to my desired destination and a furious storm began to brew. The winds raged and waves crashed. I was terrified. My sea sick patch was not going to get me through it by any means. I worried that my boat would capsize. I tried to throw my anchor over and that didn't help. I strapped on a life jacket and extra floaties just in case. I held on for dear life as the waves threatened to drag me overboard.
I don't like being in storms, but I'm reminded that I don't sail alone. It's easy for me to get distracted and forget I have another passenger on board. I try so hard to ensure that I'll survive the storm by my own efforts and as I'm clinging on for dear life, I realize that my efforts are worthless. I have no power over the storm. But He does.
So I have called on the one who can command the storms. I am calling on the one who sets them in motion and stops them in their tracks. He speaks, they obey, and fear subsides. I hear him uttering the same words to me as he spoke to his disciples, "[Brittnye], why were you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" And I, once again, remember "Our God is a God who saves!" (Psalm 64:20)
#47 - Because he sees the storms coming and he has the power to calm them.
"Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven." - Psalm 107: 28-30
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” - Mark 4:35-41
I have found myself sailing along through life in calm, still waters. Occasionally, I have experienced some choppy waves that rocked my boat and caused me to get sea sick, but I slapped on a sea-sick patch behind my ear and was able to mask my nauseous feelings. Of course, the boat was rocking but the patch was doing a good job of tricking my body into thinking otherwise and I was able to sail on until smoother waters returned.
In the story above, we see the disciples and Jesus sailing along in smooth waters. I'm sure they were enjoying the mist in their face and beauty of the water as they headed to their destination. Many of these men were fishermen by trade so being on a boat was a very natural thing for them. They probably felt right at home. As they sailed along, a storm popped up. In my opinion, one of the scariest places to be is in the middle of a storm with no land insight. The waves crashed over their boat and threatened their lives. Even though they might have been comfortable sailing, they had no control over their circumstances. They could not stop the boat from being tossed. They could not keep the waves from coming aboard, and they certainly had to way to make sure their boat didn't capsize. These men might have even been strong swimmers, but being thrown into the water with raging and crashing waves doesn't allow one much of a chance for survival.
As these men feared for their lives, they remembered that Jesus was on board. I find it interesting that he was sleeping through the chaos, anyhow, they woke him up seeking his help. Jesus didn't tell them to man up and ride the storm out, he didn't ask them to come back and wake him in 15 minutes because he was still sleepy, he didn't throw them life jackets and tell them to hang on tight, no, he got up and he told the storm it was time to stop. Enough is enough! That's all it took. A word from the Savior and the storm was over.
Storm can pop up unexpectedly. The scariest thing about storms is that we have no control over them. We don't know how long they will last, how much damage they will cause, or how severe they will be. But he knows. Not only does he know, he has the power to determine how long they will last, how much damage will be caused and how severe they will be.
I have been in the disciples' shoes. I was sailing along just fine to my desired destination and a furious storm began to brew. The winds raged and waves crashed. I was terrified. My sea sick patch was not going to get me through it by any means. I worried that my boat would capsize. I tried to throw my anchor over and that didn't help. I strapped on a life jacket and extra floaties just in case. I held on for dear life as the waves threatened to drag me overboard.
I don't like being in storms, but I'm reminded that I don't sail alone. It's easy for me to get distracted and forget I have another passenger on board. I try so hard to ensure that I'll survive the storm by my own efforts and as I'm clinging on for dear life, I realize that my efforts are worthless. I have no power over the storm. But He does.
So I have called on the one who can command the storms. I am calling on the one who sets them in motion and stops them in their tracks. He speaks, they obey, and fear subsides. I hear him uttering the same words to me as he spoke to his disciples, "[Brittnye], why were you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" And I, once again, remember "Our God is a God who saves!" (Psalm 64:20)
#47 - Because he sees the storms coming and he has the power to calm them.
"Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven." - Psalm 107: 28-30