We can relate to this gospel story, can’t we? How often have we found ourselves in the midst of a storm, feeling very much alone? Literally or figuratively, life is full of storms. Like the apostles, some of us have found ourselves literally caught up unexpectedly on small crafts in stormy conditions, wondering if we would survive. We were fortunate, unlike the passengers and crew who perished when their plane broke apart recently over the Atlantic Ocean en route from Brazil to France or the many fishermen in Alaska’s Bering Sea whose boats have capsized.
More likely than physical storms, however, we find ourselves in life’s other storms. Some are major, such as being diagnosed with a grave illness or learning that someone close to us is ill, or when a relationship goes amiss or the loss of a job to name a few examples. Others are minor such as a spat over what channel to watch or who does what chore around the house.
Whatever the storm may be, some times our reaction is fear, just as it was for the apostles. They had set out for the other side of the lake not expecting to encounter such foul weather, but violent storms can arise suddenly and without warning on the Sea of Galilee when strong winds come through from the Mediterranean Sea. Without warning the storm hit and their boat was being tossed about by high waves and strong winds. The boat they were in could be likened in size to a cabin cruiser, perhaps with a capacity to hold 13 people. Can you just hear the panic in their voice as they awaken Jesus, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
Clearly they were afraid and why not? They had no reason yet to think that Jesus had such supernatural power to still the wind and calm the sea. At a time when life jackets did not exist, they expected to drown if they didn’t reach shore. Fear gripped them.
How often has fear gripped and paralyzed us? In his first inaugural address, Franklin Delano Roosevelt had this to say, “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
After quieting the stormy sea, Jesus asked the disciples, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” In the original Greek, Mark records Jesus as actually saying, “Why are you cowards?” That isn’t exactly the response I bet the disciples expected to hear, nor us. If anything, we expected him to say, “There, there now. Everything will be all right.” After all, isn’t a Messiah is someone who will save us in times of crisis, no?
Many people literally expect Jesus to be there to rescue them whenever a storm of any sorts arises. They truly believe that he is there to get them whatever they need or to solve their problems. They see Jesus as their “cosmic bellhop.”
If you need this or that, be it a new job, a parking place, a spot in the next ferry line, a baby sitter, a cure for your illness, you ask God for it. You need help out of a jam? You need someone to step in and straighten things out? Call on God! After all, God is there to solve our problems!
Is that what you have built your faith on? Are you in this relationship with God so long as things go your way and everything goes smoothly? Then expect Jesus to chastise you just as he rebuked the disciples and for good reason. Is that really faith that is keeping you linked with God?
If everything is to go our way, we are setting ourselves up for a self-centered outlook on life. We see God as arranging things just to satisfy us, but that really cannot happen for ultimately God is not in control of our world. God can’t be if at the same time, we are given free will, which is a must if we are to love and be loved.
Jesus is telling us to quit being cowards and instead have faith. But faith in what? If God isn’t going to solve our problems, what then is faith all about?
Faith is this: knowing that God is present in our lives at all times and in all places. Faith means trusting in God no matter what happens in this life. No matter what difficulties we may face, no matter what dangers we confront, in the end, God will win. If we keep faith in God, then we will be saved for all eternity.
When God doesn’t deliver what we want here and now, the temptation is to abandon our faith in God, but where does that leave us? Are the challenges of life going to be any easier to handle if we leave God out of the picture? Most likely not. When we retreat from God, we will be left more and more to our own resources. On the other hand, when we endeavor to advance in our faith relationship with God, we increase the likelihood of dealing with our crises in ways we would not otherwise have considered. That is the role the Holy Spirit plays in our lives.
This weekend, I celebrate my 23rd anniversary of ordination to the priesthood. Like any other father, I have experienced my fair share of storms during all that time, but I haven’t been alone on this journey either. In my bedroom, I have a plaque that reads, “Lord help me to remember that nothing is going to happen to me today that you and I together can’t handle.” Yes, God can get us through our storms, perhaps not in the way we want, but ultimately in ways that can render us courage and inner peace.
God may not always give us ready answers to satisfy our human longings, but by deepening our faith so that it is more than a self-serving relationship, we come to see that this Jesus will calm our fears and make us strong.