This blog post was written by Pastor Paul Emmerson
This morning’s TV weather report on the BBC, began with some amazing pictures of lightning strikes in New York, and the weather presenter went on to say that New York was expected to experience such storms until the early hours of Friday morning.
On Wednesday afternoon, in our Chaplaincy devotions we looked at Mark 4:35-41, which is the familiar account of Jesus being asleep in the disciple’s boat while a storm raged.
Both in Mark 4:35-41 and Luke 8:22-25 we see the disciples getting rather upset during this storm! It seems ironic that they should be so fearful, as if anyone knew of the unpredictability of the Lake of Galilee, then surely it was the disciples. After all, a number of them had ‘worked the lake’ for years – it was where they earned their income and these were as experienced fishermen as you could get.
But fear can do strange things to you! And to cap it all, Jesus was asleep in the boat while the disciples were fearful for their lives!
However, while they knew they were in great danger, they also knew that Jesus was with them. When we face storms it’s easy to become afraid and let our fear overcome our faith. The disciples did the right thing, they turned to Jesus to ask for His help, but they turn to Him in fear rather than in faith and that’s a really different perspective. They turn to Him with hearts pounding, fearful at what’s happening, panicking, instead of turning to Him out a position of faith, calmly trusting that He has everything in hand and will handle it perfectly.
How often we are like the disciples in this respect?
And Jesus asks them, “Where is your faith?” It appears that their faith had been drowned out and obliterated by their fear. So, where is our faith? Is it in Jesus or is it in our own ability to rescue or save ourselves?
We can see from the disciples experiences that Jesus is sovereign over every situation and can calm whatever storm we face, yet so often we forget His power and willingness to help. We can turn to Jesus at any time, but it is better to turn to Him in faith that He will overcome the situation than in fear that we will drown!
I think many of the old hymn-writers had come to understand the importance of trusting God over their own fears. They penned such words as, ‘Simply trusting every day, trusting through a stormy way; even when my faith is small, trusting Jesus, that is all’; or, as John Wesley said, ‘Through waves, and clouds, and storms He gently clears the way; Wait for His time, so shall this night soon end in glorious day’……
May such words, not just be words on a page, but the experience of our hearts!