Lessons From The Storm

Articles

Mike Osnes
03/30/20 - General Exhortation

Luke 8:22-25

²²Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.” And they launched out. ²³But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and they were in jeopardy. ²⁴ And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying Master, Master, we are perishing! Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. ²⁵ But he said to them “ Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another “Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him.

It happened on a day like any other, Jesus and his disciples were headed across the lake to preach. Just as in this day we were going about our lives. Then a windstorm came, just as the windstorm of COVID-19 came upon us. As the boat began to fill with water the disciples realized they were in danger. Much the same way we realized we are in danger. We read that the disciples came saying to Him, “Master, Master, we are perishing.” According to the text, the disciples went to Jesus right away when they realized that they were in danger.

Now let me ask you this. How often do we go directly to the Master as soon as we realize that we are in peril? How often do we try to deal with the situation ourselves? How often do we exercise our faith by relying on the Lord to rebuke the wind and waves? One of the things I am thankful for is the opportunity for my faith to be tested. In these times of uncertainty and concern, we need to remember, that while it may appear that the Lord is napping He is in complete control and in His time, according to His plan, He will rebuke the wind and waves of this current situation. We just need to remember to put our trust in Him and rely upon the strength that comes from the Lord. When our faith is tested and we see the works of God rebuking the wind and waves, let us not be fearful and let us not marvel, for we know who it is who commands the winds and water.