I was reading this morning that story about Jesus out on the sea with his disciples and the sudden squall that threatened to capsize their boat. And the guys were all terrified, but where was Jesus? Fast asleep.
So in a panic they woke Him up, saying, Save us! We’re perishing!
Jesus’ response? He rebuked the winds and the sea, and suddenly there was a great calm.
You know what happened there? Those guys forgot Who was in the boat with them. I mean, this is Jesus we’re talking about: the very One who created the sea in the first place, the One who established the laws of nature. But the men weren’t looking at Jesus; they were looking at the waves, and the dark skies, and the smallness of their boat.
Now I’ve never been out on the ocean in a boat of any size. I’ve never experienced the scariness of a deep sea storm. But I’ve lived life for a while, and there have been some pretty scary “storms” that have threatened to capsize my “boat.”
Like too many bills and not enough cash in my bank account.
Like needing a car and a credit score too low to qualify for a loan.
Like the overwhelming pain of a broken heart and only my pillow to hear me.
But, wait, who is in the boat with me?
One of my favorite authors puts it like this. “Nothing can withstand the triumphant faith that links itself to omnipotence…. It is a secret incomprehensible to those who know nothing of the unseen divine power that waits on the demands of faith; a secret that must always seem, to those who do not understand it, the height of folly and imprudence.” -Hannah Whitall Smith
Don’t look at the waves; look at the One who created the ocean.
Don’t look at the bank account; look at the One who hid gold inside the earth.
Don’t look at the sickness; look at the Healer who fashioned the body in the first place.
Don’t look at your own inadequacies; look at the God who does the impossible.
The One who keeps His promises.
The One who loves with an everlasting love.
Keeping our eyes fixed, fixed, on Jesus.