I’ve mentioned multiple times that I can read a passage from the Bible – one that I’ve read before and am familiar with – and get something new out of it… Almost every time. A different perspective if you will. I was reading the story of Jesus taking a nap in the midst of the storm and something shifted in my understanding. And I can’t help but see that this is all perfectly timed.
Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!” Matthew 8:23-27 NLT
If you were to ask anyone who knows me well, you would know that I’m not what most people consider laid back. That would be my husband. I’m a bit more uptight. It’s okay – I’m okay to own it – it’s one of the many characteristics that makes me who I am. But I will admit that it sometimes gets me in trouble.
I get stressed over so many things! I stress over homeschooling our kiddos, over work lining up for my husband, over my blog and the future of it, and the simplicity of showing up on time. There are big things, but there are also things of little to no consequence. I get wrapped up so tight in figuring out the details that I often don’t see the beauty in the process. Again… it’s not the best approach – and I really do want to get better about it – but I know this about myself.
How many people have been feeling overwhelmed lately? Perhaps, like me, you have been feeling a bit anxious because of the state of the world and all of the atrocities that have been exposed over the past several years, especially in the last couple weeks. I’m not getting into conspiracy theories, the political arena, or going down the rabbit hole… the reality is that darkness is being exposed and there’s no denying it. There are so many more evil deeds going on than many care to admit.
But I’m here to expose some hope.
In the past when I’ve read this passage in Matthew 8, I always understood this lesson to be about having peace and stronger faith. I see myself in the disciples – worrying and anxious about the danger around me. I admit that I’m concerned about the world my kiddos are growing up in. I’m worried about the evil that is so prevalent around us. I worry that we’ll be overtaken because there’s water in the boat and the storm is still raging. But maybe there’s something else to see here.
Perhaps it’s recognizing the authority of the One who is in the boat. Not just in the same boat that we’re in – rather He’s with us no matter the boat we’re in – but that He’s unmoved by the very real danger that’s all around us. He’s not moved not because He doesn’t care about us, but because He is the very authority that created the heavens and the earth – and everything in it – and it doesn’t unravel when He rests.
Jesus was asleep in the boat. Not indifferent, but simply unmoved by it. He was not threatened by the chaos of the storm. And God is not threatened with what is happening in the world now. This realization of Jesus not being threatened by the chaos of the world – the very real evil – hit me hard. Why do I feel so twisted up in anxiety, grief, and uncertainty when the King of Kings is in the boat with me?
I remember the lesson on increasing faith being pulled from Matthew 8:26 when Jesus asks the disciples, Why are you afraid? You have so little faith! But what if this passage is more about authority and the rest that comes when we recognize it? It’s as though the disciples weren’t seeing that Jesus held the authority of all creation no matter what storm blew through.
I’ve always marveled when someone appeared to be calm and demonstrated a state of peace when they were going through a figurative hell. Sometimes that peace can appear to others as indifference, but what if it’s the reality of the gospel? What if peace walked out is not the absence of a storm, but resting in the presence of the One who has all authority? Jesus may not calm every storm, but He wants us to know that we can rest because of His authority and presence.
As I was reading this passage recently, I recognized that I would have been fighting for control. I would have been spiritually duking it out for that storm to calm its mess. But Jesus catching a few Zs show us that He’s not wrestling for anything: it’s already His. And He’s not just the Alpha, but He’s the Omega, too (and everything in between).
I find that amazing and beautiful because Jesus hadn’t gone to the cross yet. He hadn’t conquered death yet. That was still on the horizon. But He still demonstrated that He held all – ALL – authority. And now we’re on the other side of the cross. Death has been defeated. He has sat down at the right hand of the Father (Hebrews 10:12). Sitting down is huge! It means that there are no more sacrifices to be made – It was finished once and for all!
Jesus isn’t pacing Heaven’s halls, He’s not nervously chewing His nails, and He’s not anxious about any storm that we find ourselves in. He’s trying to tell us today that it doesn’t matter about the storm – it’s about our recognizing Who is in the boat with us.
We’re not rewarded with peace for making it through a storm. No, peace is the direct result of trusting the authority of Jesus Christ even while we’re in the middle of the storm.
Yes, it feels like we can see the enemy at every turn. The evil that has been documented and is now available for the world to read is a heavier weight than we can bear. It’s the very waves crashing over the sides of our boat and starting to fill it with water.
But our Lord and Savior is seated. The wind and the waves obey Him. Demons shudder at the mention of His name. He’s resting because He already has the victory.
And He’s in our boat.
I encourage you to take some time – this is definitely for me, too – to unplug from the world and plug into God’s Word. Be aware, but don’t be consumed. The One who holds the victory is in our boat. While the storms aren’t all going to be calmed or removed, we can allow Him to redefine them.