Is your boat being rocked?

"I don't know how big of a storm I can take, Mechay", my dad says as we discuss being tossed by the storms of life. The past two weeks our family has been hit wave after wave by the hurricanes of sickness, death, and security. We struggle with the chance of losing family members and the definite loss of others. Strong souls being weakened and bruised by the frailty of this world. "If the Lord's trying to show me something, I wish I knew what it was. I must be doing something wrong", he would say as he poured out his burdens. His words remind me of the miracle in John 6 when Jesus calms the storm.

Lately at church we've been going through Christ's miracles and focusing on the fact that yes, they were to show God's power and glory but also to point out something different. Jesus never wasted a miracle, and the reason they are even in the Bible is because there is some special significance to them. For this miracle it is that Jesus is Lord over all of life's storms. Storms are inevitable (John 16:33), unpredictable, and impartial towards who they effect, so how do we handle them?

First we have to realize that Jesus might have led us straight into them. In Mark 6 the Word says that Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him across the lake. They weren't being punished for running from God like Jonah, nor were they dealing with doubt like James talks about. In fact, they got caught up in the storm because they OBEYED God. They were right in the middle of God's will and right in the middle of a storm. He had complete control over the storm, and complete control over their lives. This is comforting and frustrating at the same time.

So great, if we follow Christ will we still feel abandoned when He's all the way across the lake? Bend beyond measure when the winds are too strong to stand? Feel over our heads in tidal waves of tears that we're drowning in? Yes. We will feel as if we cannot afford to weather this storm. We might second guess ourselves, others, and God. We might forget every good thing we've been given, like the warm sun on our faces or every grain of food that fills our stomachs. It's possible that we will groan and fight every encouraging word spoken to lift our spirits, and reject reminders of His truth. But we can't give up, won't relent until he calms the seas.

Because Dad, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us! We follow His plan, remembering He knows the way. We trust His providence, because certainly there's more to our journey than just getting to the other side. We depend on His power, and being filled with hope, we rest in His presence thanking Him that we don't have to do it alone.