Be Still!

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Sometimes we learn something in a storm that we couldn’t learn any other way. In this story Jesus and his disciples are crossing the Sea of Galilee in a small fishing boat.

Some of the disciples were fishermen, and they had spent much of their lives on this body of water. So from one point of view, they were the experts—and Jesus, who had grown up as a carpenter’s son, was in their care.

Yet their expertise was being tested. While Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat, the wind suddenly blew stronger. Soon the sea came crashing over the sides and swamping the boat. These fishermen knew how dangerous this storm was. They knew that they all could drown.

They woke Jesus from his sleep, saying, “Don’t you care?!” But as soon as he woke up, Jesus said to the wind and the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” And the sea became calm. The disciples were in a state of awe. “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Through this terrifying experience the disciples saw clearly who Jesus was. They were tested in the area of life they knew best, and Jesus showed he is Lord over all things. The storms of life can trouble our souls, but God can reveal more of himself to us through these experiences.

Lord, teach us more about you through the storms in our lives. Help us to see our weakness and your strength. Calm our hearts by your Word, we pray. Amen.