Psalm 57:1 Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me! For my soul seeks refuge in You; in the shadow of Yourwings I will make my refuge, until the ruinous storm passes by.Matthew 14:29-32 Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
Mark 4:37-41 37 A great wind storm arose, and the waves splashed into the boat, so that it was now filling the boat. 38 He was in the stern asleep on a pillow. They woke Him and said, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39 He rose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” Then the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is that you have no faith?” 41 They feared greatly and said to one another, “What kind of Man is He, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
- Immediately seek refuge from God, asking Him to keep you safe?
- “Oh, this is a storm. Hey, God, please keep me safe!”
- Boldly step forth into the storm, only to find yourself sinking until you rely on Jesus?
- “I can handle this storm. I’ll just take it on headfirst and… Oh, Lord, help!”
- Panic thinking that God is not taking care of you, then call on Jesus to calm the storm?
- “This is a disaster! We’re going down! How could God let this happen? God, you have to help us!”
- Or, maybe none of the above?
Please put your answer in the comments before you continue reading. (And, yes, we’re talking about how you respond to metaphorical storms, not necessarily weather events.)
What I noticed when I read the passage about Peter walking on the water, that I had never noticed before, is that Jesus doesn’t calm the wind until after they reach the boat. Peter was worried about the wind. But Jesus wasn’t worried about the wind, because the wind wasn’t why Peter was sinking. Peter’s fears were why Peter was sinking, and Jesus saved him from his fears. He didn’t stop the wind until after He saved Peter.
And in that story in Mark, the storm was so bad that the boat was filling with water, but Jesus was asleep. He was not worried about that storm. I’m sure He knew about it – how can you be on a boat in a storm and NOT know about it? But they had to wake Him up from a nap to ask for help. So then what does He ask them after He calms the storm? He asks why are they fearful. Again, it was their fear that was the problem.
I’d like to point out that in NONE of these scenarios does God prevent a storm from happening. Storms happen! They are part of living. He doesn’t save us from disaster by making sure no disasters ever happen to us. We act like He should! But He never promised that. He promised to be with us, and to save us, and give us refuge. So, next time you’re in the storm, seek out the refuge instead of flailing around in fear. If it seems like he hasn’t stopped the wind yet, maybe you haven’t let Him put you back in the boat yet.
***
Lord, life feels like a boat in a storm sometimes – like waves just keep crashing over the bow and I don’t know how I’ll ever get bailed out. Remind me that you’re in control of the storm. Sometimes it seems like maybe I just like to freak out, get angry, get panicked, get scared. I never do the right things when I am like that. Help me remember to turn to you early on in the storm. If I am silly enough to step out of the boat, keep my fears from sinking me, and put me back in the boat. Most of all, remind me that you care about me, and you won’t let me drown, if I cling to you. Amen.
***
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.