Tues 30 June You of little faith, why are you so afraid?

Matthew 8:23-27

Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him.Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

Food for thought!

In the Bible nothing happened without a purpose; and nothing was written by chance. Everything in the Bible has a message. This miracle is full of messages. The first message is that the disciples of Jesus were not exempt from a test of faith and neither are we. Many of us think: I’m too loving, too giving, too faithful, too loyal, too obedient , too prayerful, too dedicated to God. Besides, I go to church on Sunday! But despite all of this, we find ourselves in the midst of storms of life; we find ourselves dazed and confused, wondering how we got there and how to get out.

We look at the storms of our lives and too often, ask, “If God is so loving, why does He allow pain and suffering in my life? What have I done to deserve being a victim in this circumstance? Why do I need to go through this storm? Why can’t He just take me around it? I want out and NOW!”

God’s incredible love for us does not eliminate the pain, suffering, and heartache that we might go through. However, God's Promises assure us that He is with us, and He is using it all for good (Romans 8:28). Through it all, we learn to trust that no matter how devastating the storm might be… God is with us. And if we trust and obey Him, He will strengthen us and fill us with hope in the midst of the storm.

Just think about the fact that the Disciples were in a boat, with who they supposedly believed was the Son of God; yet, even they failed to acknowledge Him, until it was almost too late. They were about to die! Why didn’t it occur to them to ask for Jesus’ help sooner? The answer seems so obvious. In our own storms of life, it’s often difficult to see the “obvious.” Our vision becomes clouded with debilitating doubt and paralyzing fear.

The Disciples were truly the closest men to the Son of God; yet, at the end of this miracle we see that even they had doubts in their heart about who Jesus really was. They saw with their own eyes all of the miracles He performed, but they still asked, “Who is this man?” A little surprising… don’t you think?

It should be comforting to know that although God allows the storm, Jesus is in the boat with you, with me. Yes, He is with you, right now, in the boat where you sit in the midst of your storm . The difference is: He is in the stern resting because He wants you and me to learn to rest in our storms.

The purpose of our storms, simply put, is all about our relationship with Jesus. It’s all about our faith in God.