Mark 4:35-39 "And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let
us pass over unto the other side. (36) And when they had sent away
the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also
with him other little ships. (37) And there arose a great storm of
wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.
(38) And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow:
and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
(39) And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea,
Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm."
I used more Scripture today than normal, but these verses warrant our attention. I think we all have pictured this scene in our minds. The disciples and Jesus get into the ship to go to the other side of the sea of Galilee. No doubt, Jesus has a purpose for going to the other side, but a "great storm of wind" came upon them while they were on their way. Surely this would stop their progress. Right? They were doomed for destruction. Right? The storm caught them off guard and Jesus was asleep. What would they do now? Did Jesus even care that their world was upside down now and there was no hope (in their eyes) for completing this trip.
There are many circumstances that come upon our lives that cause us to feel our world to be upside down or even coming to an end as we have known it. Things happen for which we have no explanation. We begin to focus on the wind and the waves and the tossing about of the ship (our lives). What are we to do? Does the Lord even know we are in this situation? If He knows, does He care that our lives are upside down and out of control? What are we going to do? How can we endure such difficult times? All sorts of questions begin to invade our minds and with those questions comes doubt and fear. "Carest thou not that we perish?"
Let us refocus our hearts as we look at this circumstance with the disciples and Jesus. First of all, Jesus had declared they were going to the other side. Do we think there could have been anything that would have prevented Jesus from arriving on the other side? If Jesus was going to arrive, I assure you the disciples were going to arrive also. Jesus had said, "Let US go to the other side." His plan was for everyone in the ship to arrive safely. Second, let us think about the storm. There is no power on earth that is stronger than the Omnipotent God whom we serve. There is no storm in our lives that is greater than God. Greater than us, yes. But not greater than our God. Did Jesus care about His disciples? Does Jesus care about us? Does Jesus care about me? Oh yes, He cares!
If He cares, then why did He allow the storm to approach them? Could it be that the agenda of our Lord is different than the agend we have for ourselves? Could it be that on that day Jesus was going to show them His absolute power over the elements of life? But it only came as a result of their being brought to the place of understanding their inability. Then they had to come to the place where they understood their inability before they truly took their case to Jesus. He was aware of the storm all the time, but it seems to me that He was willing to ride the "wind and waves" until they came to the place of brokenly coming to Jesus. "We cannot steer the ship through this storm. We need YOU." Then He calmly arose and spoke to the wind and the waves, "Peace, be still." I believe these words also resonated in the hearts of the disciples. Notice the wording, "And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." I believe the calm was in the hearts of those disciples.
We are in a great storm just now. Some are in more than one storm, or their storms seem to be larger than others. The wind is blowing contrary to us. There is confusion. There is doubt. There is fear all across the land. There are those who are trying to maneuver their way through the storm. May I say to each of us, there is One, and only One, Who is the Master of the Sea, Wind, and Life. We know His name is Jesus. In case you may have lost focus, let me remind you that He cares for you. He cares so much that He allowed the nails to be driven through His hands and His feet. He cares. He cares. He cares. AND He is able to speak to the situation and to each heart: "Peace, be Still."
Are you weary? Are you heavy hearted? Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus. Are you grieving over joys departed? Tell it to Jesus alone.
I used more Scripture today than normal, but these verses warrant our attention. I think we all have pictured this scene in our minds. The disciples and Jesus get into the ship to go to the other side of the sea of Galilee. No doubt, Jesus has a purpose for going to the other side, but a "great storm of wind" came upon them while they were on their way. Surely this would stop their progress. Right? They were doomed for destruction. Right? The storm caught them off guard and Jesus was asleep. What would they do now? Did Jesus even care that their world was upside down now and there was no hope (in their eyes) for completing this trip.
There are many circumstances that come upon our lives that cause us to feel our world to be upside down or even coming to an end as we have known it. Things happen for which we have no explanation. We begin to focus on the wind and the waves and the tossing about of the ship (our lives). What are we to do? Does the Lord even know we are in this situation? If He knows, does He care that our lives are upside down and out of control? What are we going to do? How can we endure such difficult times? All sorts of questions begin to invade our minds and with those questions comes doubt and fear. "Carest thou not that we perish?"
Let us refocus our hearts as we look at this circumstance with the disciples and Jesus. First of all, Jesus had declared they were going to the other side. Do we think there could have been anything that would have prevented Jesus from arriving on the other side? If Jesus was going to arrive, I assure you the disciples were going to arrive also. Jesus had said, "Let US go to the other side." His plan was for everyone in the ship to arrive safely. Second, let us think about the storm. There is no power on earth that is stronger than the Omnipotent God whom we serve. There is no storm in our lives that is greater than God. Greater than us, yes. But not greater than our God. Did Jesus care about His disciples? Does Jesus care about us? Does Jesus care about me? Oh yes, He cares!
If He cares, then why did He allow the storm to approach them? Could it be that the agenda of our Lord is different than the agend we have for ourselves? Could it be that on that day Jesus was going to show them His absolute power over the elements of life? But it only came as a result of their being brought to the place of understanding their inability. Then they had to come to the place where they understood their inability before they truly took their case to Jesus. He was aware of the storm all the time, but it seems to me that He was willing to ride the "wind and waves" until they came to the place of brokenly coming to Jesus. "We cannot steer the ship through this storm. We need YOU." Then He calmly arose and spoke to the wind and the waves, "Peace, be still." I believe these words also resonated in the hearts of the disciples. Notice the wording, "And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm." I believe the calm was in the hearts of those disciples.
We are in a great storm just now. Some are in more than one storm, or their storms seem to be larger than others. The wind is blowing contrary to us. There is confusion. There is doubt. There is fear all across the land. There are those who are trying to maneuver their way through the storm. May I say to each of us, there is One, and only One, Who is the Master of the Sea, Wind, and Life. We know His name is Jesus. In case you may have lost focus, let me remind you that He cares for you. He cares so much that He allowed the nails to be driven through His hands and His feet. He cares. He cares. He cares. AND He is able to speak to the situation and to each heart: "Peace, be Still."
Are you weary? Are you heavy hearted? Tell it to Jesus. Tell it to Jesus. Are you grieving over joys departed? Tell it to Jesus alone.