Thoughts for the Day

And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. A gale arose on the lake, so great that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him up, saying, ‘Lord, save us! We are perishing!’ And he said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, you of little faith?’ Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm. They were amazed, saying, ‘What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?’

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I have great sympathy for the disciples who are caught up in one of the massive storms that often attack the Sea (or Lake) of Galilee. The winds rage down from the north funnelled by the steep sides of the mountains and whip up a frenzy. I can get "seasick" on a ferry across a river, so the fact that this group (which includes four seasoned fishermen) think they are actually going to drown, strikes me as very important for they would have faced many such storms before.

Jesus has just spent time on the mountain teaching and then healing the people. The only way he has escaped them for a respite is by sailing across the lake. He is exhausted, and falls asleep. Don't let us assume that because He is God he is not fully human. Stones caught in his sandals would have hurt him, hunger would have affected him, and teaching and healing would have drained him. But he sleeps secure in the knowledge that His Father keeps him safe.

The disciples panic, but equally they know that there is one person who can protect them - Jesus. They may not know how he will do this, but their trust is absolute. "Save us," they cry, and the Lord of Creation does so. He rebukes the winds and the sea, 'and there was a dead calm'.

We too are called to have an instinctive trust in Jesus when life suddenly seems to become untenable. After all we know the rest of the Jesus story and have been given access to the power of God through the Holy Spirit when we shout to Him, "Save us!"

Lord Jesus Christ,
when our world seems one of madness and despair,
and when we don't know where to turn for help,
may we remember that You are there -
waiting in the wings for us to turn to You.
Give us the faith shown by the disciples -
to know that You will come to our aid,
and that Your solution will be the best.
Amen.