Peace! Be Still!
Scripture: Mark 4:35-41
I eagerly left the Tanzanian
city of Dar es Salaam (“harbor of peace”) for the beautiful island of
Zanzibar. All the seats inside the boat
where taken, so my friends and I were forced to stand on the deck. Together, we admired the beautiful day and the
majesty of God’s creation. Everything
was perfect until “a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat”
(v37). While we had no fear of sinking,
we were drenched, shook up, and seasick.
Stumbling inside to seek shelter yet unable to find a chair, I collapsed
on the floor with the luggage, hugging a stranger’s suitcase and praying for
calmer waters.
How much worse the disciples
must have felt when they encountered a fierce storm “in the evening” (v35)! I imagine they were even more dismayed that
Jesus remained asleep, unaware of their welfare and the magnitude of their
plight. Awoken by their alarm, Jesus
rebuked the storm and his disciples, questioning both their fear and their
faith.
Sometimes we too find
ourselves in the dark, in midst of an unexpected storm, far from the harbor of
peace, and questioning whether Jesus cares about our plight. Yet in those trying times, we can rest
assured that Jesus is in the boat with us, calming both us and the storm,
strengthening both our faith and our witness.
Prayer: Sweet Jesus,
thank you for calming the storms and hushing the waves in our lives. Decrease our fear, and increase our faith so
we can trust you more fully with our lives, Amen.
The Reverend Adrienne Denson
Very timely for me seven days after finding myself on the scene of a tragic event that caught me by surprise. Reading this meditation and taking deep breaths that truly, we must be still and know that God is faithful and will not abandon us when we go through the deep waters of life!
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