Devotional 6-19-15

Into the storm

The lectionary Gospel reading for this week is Mark 4:35-41.  It tells the story you may have heard many times about Jesus telling his disciples that they should cross the lake, late in the evening.  This is after a day on the lake already - a day that such large crowd had gathered to hear what Jesus had to say, he had to get in a boat and get away from the shore to be seen and heard.

During the day, Jesus shared with the disciples and all those gathered several parables - the parable of the soils, a parable about lamps, parables about what God’s kingdom is like.  We read that Jesus have the listeners “as much as they were able to hear.” (Mark 4:33).  Jesus spoke to the crowds that day only in parables, then explained everything to his disciples when he was alone with them.

After all this, Jesus suggests to his disciples that they should cross over to the other side of the lake.  This might sound like a reasonable request.  However, things quickly went wrong.  While they were underway, a storm quickly came up.  The disciples, most of whom were fishermen and familiar with sailing for most of their lives, panicked.  Jesus, however, slept through the event, until they woke him and accused him of not caring that they were “drowning.”

Jesus calmed the sea, and then asked the disciples why they were frightened.  Did they not have faith yet?

On the one hand, this is a story about faith - about trusting in Christ to be with us in the storm, and watching over us and caring for us.  But perhaps an equally important lesson is that Jesus will send us INTO storms.  It was not uncommon for storms to come quickly at night here.  Perhaps Jesus even knew that there would come a storm.  His mission of getting to the other side of the lake was what he asked the disciples to accomplish.  It was his plan, and his timing.  If the disciples knew this, they should not have been frightened or concerned about drowning.

It was uncomfortable for them.  And it was clearly frightening for them, as it would be for us.  Most of what we are called to do is like that.  Sometimes I think we expect our road of discipleship to be easy.  Perhaps though if we find ourselves too comfortable, we should begin to ask if we are where Jesus wants us to be.

In the end, the disciples learned a valuable lesson that evening - that though it felt scary and though it seemed as though Christ had forgotten about them and their predicament, he was in it with them, but had the peace and assurance of living into the Kingdom plan, as dangerous as that seemed.  When we are faced with that same storm, remember that Christ is there with us too.

“Gracious God, give us the peace and assurance of your comfort in the storms.  We know that we are called to a radical discipleship, out onto the stormy waters.  But we know that you are always with us.  Let us lean into that peace as we go and make disciples of all the world.  Amen.”

Rev. Alan Williams