Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters. They saw the deeds of the Lord, His wondrous works in the deep. For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven. They went down to the depths. Their courage melted away in their evil plight. They reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits' end. Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He made the storm still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and He brought them to their desired haven. Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! Let them extol Him in the congregation of the people, and praise Him in the assembly of the elders.
(Verses 23-32) Italics, mine
Physical danger. Going about our business. An ordinary day. No warning. Like the woman I read about who decided to go shopping downtown on a breezy pre-holiday Friday. On her mind was her Christmas list. And the big dinner she always prepared. With her purse slung over her shoulder, she stepped out of her Chevy and plugged coins into the parking meter. She buttoned up her sweater against the breeze that was stirring, bending the trees in the median and the animating the leaves that gathered around her feet. She wasn't expecting the man who suddenly jabbed a metal object into her back, demanding money. It took her breath away. Made her feel faint. Her mind raced as her feet seemed stuck onto the concrete walkway. A nightmare become real as the thief demanded her money, trying to grab her purse. Help me, Lord! Please help me! Rising up from her soul like a burglar alarm. Trying desperately to remember the words from Psalm 91. To say them to this renegade who'd intruded upon her ordinary day. The verse she couldn't recite: For He will deliver you from the snare of the hunter and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wing you will find refuge. All she could call up was "Feathers!" She screamed it at the top of her lungs. Once more, "Feathers!" as she turned to face the would-be robber. Who ran. So stunned by the craziness of the word and the force with which the woman repeated it. The picture in her mind of her God as a huge mother bird Who protects her when she calls.
"Let's go across to the other side of the lake," suggested Jesus to His disciples. It was a beautiful day, the sun warm and the sails shining bright in its glow. A weary Jesus lay down in the bow and was lulled to sleep by the gently splashing water as it hit the sides of the boat. Nothing to worry about. But as the morning progressed, storm clouds formed in the distance and the zephyr became a raging windstorm that kicked up the waves and rocked the fishing boat back and forth, up and down, as the lake spilled its excess onto the wooden slats on which the disciples slipped as they held on tightly to the sails. "We're going to sink!" cried Peter. "We're taking on too much water!" Panic made the grown men want to cry. They didn't know what to do. And Jesus was still asleep.
It wasn't until they'd exhausted all other possibilities that they thought to wake Him. How could He still be sleeping, anyway? "Master! Master! We are perishing!" Jesus sat up, rubbing His eyes. Unbothered by the treachery that had come upon them in the middle of the day. Confused by their wailing fear. He stood then. Spoke to the wind. "Stop!" And to the waves, "Cease!" They obeyed. And there was peace.
"Where is your faith?" An odd question. Really. If Jesus was in the boat, why the storm at all? He is God in the raging waters. Put Himself through the ups and downs of their plight to what purpose? And why did He stay asleep through their panic at perishing? They didn't fully realize who He was. Thought God would die with them out there on the lake. Just wanted to wake Him to let Him know, you know, like, we're dying here. Doubtful. Their faith was small because they didn't grasp the magnitude of Who was asleep in the bow. In the calm, as the boat settled back to steady itself, the men were terrified. No longer at the storm. Its power subsided. No. This time a holy fear. A reverence for the One Who commands the weather. Stills it for their sakes. Not His. He wasn't worried. And they went safely to the other side.
Maybe the storms are there to show us how powerful our God is. To awe us that He cares. Loves us and will deliver us. That God asleep trumps our abilities when fully awake. And that as long as He is in the boat, we'll get safely home. As long as we remember to cry out to Him, even with a puny word that calls up all He is, our God will speak to our circumstances and increase our faith in the process. He will never, never, never leave us or forsake us in the raging sea, on a city sidewalk, or in the calm. Jesus understands the nature of the waters as well as He knows the depths of our hearts. No mysteries. No treachery too great. And when at last we are overcome by the waves of this life, and we will be, we will rejoice to surface whole and complete on the other side of the storm.
(Verses 23-32) Italics, mine
Physical danger. Going about our business. An ordinary day. No warning. Like the woman I read about who decided to go shopping downtown on a breezy pre-holiday Friday. On her mind was her Christmas list. And the big dinner she always prepared. With her purse slung over her shoulder, she stepped out of her Chevy and plugged coins into the parking meter. She buttoned up her sweater against the breeze that was stirring, bending the trees in the median and the animating the leaves that gathered around her feet. She wasn't expecting the man who suddenly jabbed a metal object into her back, demanding money. It took her breath away. Made her feel faint. Her mind raced as her feet seemed stuck onto the concrete walkway. A nightmare become real as the thief demanded her money, trying to grab her purse. Help me, Lord! Please help me! Rising up from her soul like a burglar alarm. Trying desperately to remember the words from Psalm 91. To say them to this renegade who'd intruded upon her ordinary day. The verse she couldn't recite: For He will deliver you from the snare of the hunter and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wing you will find refuge. All she could call up was "Feathers!" She screamed it at the top of her lungs. Once more, "Feathers!" as she turned to face the would-be robber. Who ran. So stunned by the craziness of the word and the force with which the woman repeated it. The picture in her mind of her God as a huge mother bird Who protects her when she calls.
"Let's go across to the other side of the lake," suggested Jesus to His disciples. It was a beautiful day, the sun warm and the sails shining bright in its glow. A weary Jesus lay down in the bow and was lulled to sleep by the gently splashing water as it hit the sides of the boat. Nothing to worry about. But as the morning progressed, storm clouds formed in the distance and the zephyr became a raging windstorm that kicked up the waves and rocked the fishing boat back and forth, up and down, as the lake spilled its excess onto the wooden slats on which the disciples slipped as they held on tightly to the sails. "We're going to sink!" cried Peter. "We're taking on too much water!" Panic made the grown men want to cry. They didn't know what to do. And Jesus was still asleep.
It wasn't until they'd exhausted all other possibilities that they thought to wake Him. How could He still be sleeping, anyway? "Master! Master! We are perishing!" Jesus sat up, rubbing His eyes. Unbothered by the treachery that had come upon them in the middle of the day. Confused by their wailing fear. He stood then. Spoke to the wind. "Stop!" And to the waves, "Cease!" They obeyed. And there was peace.
"Where is your faith?" An odd question. Really. If Jesus was in the boat, why the storm at all? He is God in the raging waters. Put Himself through the ups and downs of their plight to what purpose? And why did He stay asleep through their panic at perishing? They didn't fully realize who He was. Thought God would die with them out there on the lake. Just wanted to wake Him to let Him know, you know, like, we're dying here. Doubtful. Their faith was small because they didn't grasp the magnitude of Who was asleep in the bow. In the calm, as the boat settled back to steady itself, the men were terrified. No longer at the storm. Its power subsided. No. This time a holy fear. A reverence for the One Who commands the weather. Stills it for their sakes. Not His. He wasn't worried. And they went safely to the other side.
Maybe the storms are there to show us how powerful our God is. To awe us that He cares. Loves us and will deliver us. That God asleep trumps our abilities when fully awake. And that as long as He is in the boat, we'll get safely home. As long as we remember to cry out to Him, even with a puny word that calls up all He is, our God will speak to our circumstances and increase our faith in the process. He will never, never, never leave us or forsake us in the raging sea, on a city sidewalk, or in the calm. Jesus understands the nature of the waters as well as He knows the depths of our hearts. No mysteries. No treachery too great. And when at last we are overcome by the waves of this life, and we will be, we will rejoice to surface whole and complete on the other side of the storm.
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