As I read the story of Jesus calming the storm this week, what struck me was the overwhelming sense of fear, of terror the disciples must have felt. Many of them were fishermen, used to being in boats on the water! But they truly feared for their lives, and got to thinking, have I ever been that terrified, have I ever been afraid of actually losing my life? When I was flying to New York City in 2012 as the church’s representative on the United Nations Council for the Status of Women, we hit some really nasty turbulence, after a 3 hour delay to even get on the plane. We dropped I don’t know how many feet, people without seatbelts went flying, drinks went flying, the plane went dark—that was scary and I did have a brief moment of wondering if that was the end. It was a terrifying experience at the time, I must admit. I was very glad when we landed, even if I was covered by my seatmate’s vodka and orange juice!
We do, however, know that the disciples in the boat on the Sea of Galilee were overwhelmed with fear, they were in terror of perishing, mixed in with some frustration, probably hurt feelings, and maybe a wee bit of anger, just for good measure. Jesus asks the disciples to take him across the Sea of Galilee, which in itself was interesting, because on the other side of the sea was largely non-Jewish territory. So, off they went, to the lands of potentially hostile strangers, as they hung around with an upstart Jewish Rabbi who was intent on preaching a new way of interpreting and living out the Laws of Moses. That in itself might have been anxiety provoking, if not actual fearful, a bunch of Jews going over to unfamiliar territory—Gentiles were generally not to receptive to Jewish strangers. Jesus obviously has faith in their seamanship, and no real concerns about the journey, because he curls up to sleep in the back of the boat, comfy cozy, head on a pillow. And then, while on the water, a storm blows up, it must have come up out of nowhere, because we can figure that a group of experienced fishermen would know better than to embark on a lake crossing, in the evening, if there was a storm brewing. And this must have been quite the storm—the waves so high the boat was being swamped, and yet Jesus sleeps right through it. The disciples are some upset, they were in real danger! And it seems like Jesus doesn’t care that they’re probably going to drown. They obviously didn’t really know just who was in the boat with them!
They waken Jesus in their awful distress, and Jesus stand up and orders the storm to still. And it does. The winds stop immediately and the waves subside, and all is calm on the lake. And that’s as scary as the storm was, because that’s when the fishermen disciples realize that aboard their boat was someone who could control the weather! Just let that sink in for a moment, if you had just experienced that--a violent near death experience on the high seas to an immediate and instantaneous calm, what would be going through your mind? Normal people can’t do that, regular folk, even if they are Rabbi’s or priests, have no power over the forces of nature. Who has that power? Now, recall the story at the beginning of Genesis—who created order and calm from the watery chaos before life was formed? God. And this Rabbi in the boat, who had absolutely no earthly fear of the hurricane strength storm, simply says “Peace! Be still” and the wind subsides and the waves calm down! ? No wonder they were in awe.
“Who is this then, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mk 4: 41NRSV)
This is the one who calms the storms. This is the one who brings Peace in the midst of the storm.
“Peace, be still.” (Mk 4: 39)
“It’s ok now, I’m here, you don’t need to be afraid.”
The disciples, overwhelmed with fear of the storm, are deathly afraid, don’t know what to do, or how to handle it; they are at their wits end. So what do they do? They go to Jesus, they all but demand his presence to their situation. “Don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” (v 38 NLT) . And the power and the strength, the presence of Jesus brings calmness and peace.
Jesus never berates them, never tells them that there is nothing to be afraid of.[1] Never says their feelings are not real—because feelings are very real to those who are experiencing them. Jesus just asks them why they were afraid, where was their faith, their faith in him?
We all struggle with the storms of life, and there are a whole litany of struggles we go through in a lifetime: pain, illness, loneliness, difficulties with relationships: problems with your significant other, your kids or your parents, money problems, anxious feelings, feelings of failure, grief or loss, and sometimes even fear of losing your life. There are times of uncertainly in our personal lives, when we feel afraid for the future, or we’re going into new territory and don’t know what the destination we’re headed for will bring; times when we’re out of our depth, when we don’t really know where to turn. The good news in this gospel story is that our fears
do not have ultimate power over us, because reigning over this world of fearsome things is a God who is mightier than they. Time and again in Scripture the word is, “Do not be afraid.” It is, you might say, the first and the last word of the gospel. It is the word the angels speak to the terrified shepherds (at Jesus’ birth) and the word spoken at the tomb when the women discover it empty: “Do not be afraid” ... Not because there are no fearsome things on the sea of our days, not because there are no storms, fierce winds or waves, but rather because God is with us. [2]
through all the storms of our lives. Remember, you are never, never alone.
It’s ok, Christ is here, the Holy Spirit’s presence is with you.
Then, calm your soul, and listen for the still, small voice that says “Peace, be still.”
[1] Michael L. Lindvall: “Pastoral Perspective” for Mark 4: 35-41 in Feasting on the Word, Year B Vol 3. p.166
[2] ibid