Are You In the Midst of a Storm?

We all go through storms in life don’t we?  Maybe you’re in the midst of one right now.

Our dreams are being crushed.  Life spins out of control.  And there just seems to be no answer.

That’s what I love about this story of Jesus and his disciples.

The disciples had just finished a day watching Jesus perform miracles.  Now they’re sailing across the Sea of Galilee on a star lit night relaxed in the afterglow.

Suddenly one of the notorious nor’easters hits them.  Winds whip their sails.  Waves crash over the bow.

They’re terrified.  Each one knew someone who’d drowned in one of these common ferocious storms.

Their thinking, “Why me?  Why did we ever take off?  Why didn’t we just stay on land tonight?”

That’s the often the worst part of the storm isn’t it?  The second guessing, the rehashing our decisions.

Now they can do only so much.  They’re sailing into the wind and making little headway.  They’re bailing water but not keeping up with the waves crashing over the side.

Everything they know just isn’t enough.  And they’re exhausted.

Ever felt that way?  You’ve tried everything you know but it just isn’t working this time.  And now you’re exhausted and bewildered.

Yet, in the darkest hour of that night, when all seems lost, Jesus comes.

He tells them to take courage.  What he tells us to do as well in the storms of our lives.

*Matthew 14: 24-26