Calming the Storm

"And he woke up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they ceased, and there was a calm." Luke 8:24

My Dad loved going out on little boats in the big ocean. When I was young he co-owned a boat with another navy chaplain. It wasn't terribly big, but it allowed six or eight people to go out on the water for the day to fish and to enjoy the sunshine. Invariably the clouds would move in and the winds would pick up and we would have to race for the safety of the harbor or canal. My Dad never seemed to worry and would chide us if we worried. He would calm us by putting us to work, helping him bring the boat in, teaching us how to deal with the swells and the wind in our little boat. He had enough experience to be confident in himself. And he had enough faith to be confident in God.

Jesus disciples were men who were confident on the water, and yet, the storm that came at them rattled their confidence. It must have been like nothing they had encountered before. And Jesus slept through it all, only waking when they shook him awake. More water and wind came at them than they had ever experienced, and yet Jesus was able to call to the wind and they water and they calmed themselves. The disciples had to learn who was in charge, who had the skills and gifts to overcome even the storm of the century. Jesus was in charge then and continues to be in charge of the wind and the waves - all the storms of our lives.

Today, facing a doctors visit I do not want to attend, I feel a storm brewing in my soul. I and whipped up and stormy. So today, I want to place my full confidence in Jesus, trusting him to be in charge of this day, the doctors and nurses - all the wind and the waves that I face. I ask God to be with each of us today in all the storms that we face, knowing that Jesus is right here with us, speaking directly to the storm. May we all have a deeper level of trust as we ask the maker of heaven and earth to stand in the breach for us. And may we, when things are calm, give God the thanks while we stand in the breach for others.