“Quiet! Be still!” With these words, Jesus calmed the storm that was threatening the Apostles as their boats were being tossed about and filled with water in today’s Gospel (Mark 4:35-41). It must have been a fierce storm indeed to have frightened these men, several of whom were seasoned fishermen who had made their living on the sea before becoming disciples of Jesus. They were so frightened that they woke up Jesus who was asleep in the boat. They needed him to be present to them in their panic and fear.
Certainly, Jesus can calm the worst storms in our lives as well. What are those storms? Given the events of the past year, I probably don’t even need to pose the question. Do we struggle in our relationships? Do we have trust issues? Perhaps our storms are connected to physical or financial difficulties, or health fears. Maybe we wrestle with our faith, or lack of faith. Perhaps we are challenged by anxiety and depression. How wonderful that Jesus can calm those storms. He is there for us with his peace if we just turn our fears over to him. Just as he quieted the winds and calmed the waves on the Sea of Galilee, he can bring comfort to us.
As the disciples witnessed this miracle in the sea, they were struck with awe and wonder. “Who then is this” they ask themselves, “whom even wind and sea obey?” They were still learning who Jesus was, and the might of his power. Even though they followed him daily, listening to his words and witnessing his miracles, they were still uncertain. He had just rebuked the wind and the sea, and then he seemed to rebuke his own disciples as he asked them: “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?”
The truth is that in our journey to the Father, we are still learning who Jesus is as well. It is often a big leap to go from the Jesus we read about or hear in the Gospels, to the Jesus who lives fully in our hearts. There is a huge difference between knowing Jesus intellectually and fully becoming one with him. In order to grow our faith, we need to deepen our relationship with Jesus – to spend more time with him daily, and include him in our thoughts and decisions, through prayer. We can read the Gospels and spend time with others who also believe in him so we can learn from their experience. This is a lived faith. For Jesus to be in our hearts, we must invite him in and then nourish that relationship. We can survive the storms in our life with his help, just as the disciples did. In loving Jesus, the storms with which we live will be calmed, and our faith will grow stronger.