pastor’s corner By Paul Hathcoat
Calm In the Storm
Mark 4:35-41 NLT 35 As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” 39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!” How Was Jesus so Calm? While the disciples and Jesus were floating in the water, “a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water” (Mark 4:37). We all know this story, but do we live the lesson out during our own storms? Jesus was
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found sleeping in the back of the boat, and the disciples were watching the waves, feeling the wind, and hearing the lightning crash around them. They were focused on the storm and even woke Jesus up by shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” (v. 38b). Jesus woke up and said, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” (v. 40). I imagine that Jesus was hoping that the disciples would react differently to a difficult situation. I imagine that He would have liked them to remain calm, place their trust in Him, and continue to stay focused on the bigger goal/plan instead of the temporary storm that they were experiencing. Why is it so hard for us to embrace the difficult times in our lives? Why does it take us so long to recognize that the “storms” we face are actually the life events that are setting the stage for our greatest platforms from which to show and share our faith? The hardest times in our lives have the greatest potential for us to share the Gospel and how it has been planted and grown within us. This story reminds me of what my heart and mind often look like. I frantically run around trying to fix
everything. I try to form my identity, gain grace, insulate my heart, make the right decisions, and clean up the mess when I don’t. Waves of confusion strike, waves of panic crash, and life becomes an exhausting battle driven by the fear of capsizing. In the fog of my own failing efforts, I tend to forget the help that is right beside me. Why is Jesus’ presence so easy to forget? Often, it’s usually because we seek solutions instead of seeking a relationship with the one who can solve things. The serious lack of understanding is not the ‘how’; it’s the ‘who.’ When we really know Jesus, we can stop searching for security, grace, identity, and freedom because He is all those things. We can walk through the storms grateful for them and what they will produce in us by going through them. Can you imagine with me a version of yourself that literally welcomes the next storm? Can you imagine a time when the waves may be crashing down around you, the winds may be blowing over your shelter, and the lightning is striking your boat, but you are resting quietly in the back of the boat, planning how your current experience is going to fuel your future purpose? Imagine that!
