How Did He Do It?

In Mark 4:36-39, we find Jesus and the disciples in a boat, crossing a lake, better known as The Sea of Galilee. It had been a busy teaching day for Jesus. He was exhausted. So, He went to the stern of the boat with a rower’s leather pelt for a pillow. He slept soundly.

A furious storm came up. It sent water crashing over that boat. Although many of the disciples had been fisherman and were quite used to boating and fishing on stormy waters, they panicked.

Jesus slept. The disciples panicked. What made the difference?

In verse 38, the disciples called Him “Teacher.” They knew that about Him but not too much more. Their understanding of Jesus was minimal. They knew enough to want to follow Him, but it wasn’t because they realized Who He was. They were drawn to His teaching and His miracles but their shallow understanding of Who Jesus was caused them to give way to fear and panic when the waters got rough. They hadn’t gone deep enough with Jesus to realize that it was Jesus and His Father Who had created and were in control of the very waters that now spilled into the rocking boat. Jesus could sleep because He had calm assurance that everything was under control. The disciples saw the storm – not their Savior – and they panicked.

Now, here we are – you and me! Perhaps, in the midst of the worst storm in our lives, be it physical, emotional, mental or spiritual, when fear and doubt wash over us, what can we do? We can look at the calm, serene Savior and remember Who He is and that HE IS IN CONTROL! Because we’re His, we can rest in His outstretched arms which offer us comfort, peace and security. The deeper we delve into Him and avail ourselves of His strength and grace, the more we exercise our trust of Him in our storms, the more quickly we will take our eyes off our rocking boat and avoid panic. We can rest.

Sail on, dear friend. Sail on in the confidence that your Heavenly Father is very much aware of your storms and will call out in the midst of them, “Be still (Be muzzled)!”