Finding One's Strength
What do you do when life gets hectic?
Are you easily excited, or do you manage to keep cool and stay focused?
He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace! Be still!' Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, 'Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?' - Mark 4:39-40
In today's reading, Mark brings us out onto the boat with Jesus and his disciples. He wants us to feel the storm pounding the boat, making the sea rough, wrestling away control from these experienced and highly capable fishermen.
For them to be concerned, even fearful, the conditions must have been dire, and yet Jesus is calm. They have to waken him!
When they hear Jesus tell the wind to be still, they are in awe of his power over nature, and so are we. But the message may be deeper than that.
Our faith should guide our actions. Jesus says to be still because he is still. He is calm in the face of danger, able to think clearly and act decisively.
Be still and know that God is with you.
It is so easy to loose control in a crisis. We can find ourselves overwhelmed with anxiety and fear, making it impossible to find our way out. Our fear can trap us and suffocate us.
When Jesus says, "Peace! Be still!" I think he is talking to the men in the boat as well as to the wind.
How they react to crisis determines their fate, just as much as the forces of nature that pound down on them. The lesson, then, is for us to learn how to be calm in the face of danger, how to use our faith to fight off fear and be a source of strength.
As I go through the day, I need to remember that Jesus is with me and that there is nothing I should fear. That won't be easy at times, especially if I let uncertainty and doubt rush in.
It is then that I can find strength in his word. Peace! Be still!
More to come...