23 And when He was entered into a ship, His disciples followed Him. 24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but He was asleep. 25 And His disciples came to Him, and awoke Him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. 26 And He saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him! ~ Matthew 8:23-27KJV
Jesus and His disciples were in the ship crossing over to the other side. Now, we’re not sure if all twelve of the disciples were present or not, but we know the fishermen were present. The seasoned seamen, yet they were afraid. So, this wasn’t just any storm; this must’ve been a terrifying storm to have the seasoned fishermen cry out to Jesus, saying that they were perishing.
Now, when He helps them by calming the storm, they marvel. They could hardly believe what they had just seen. Maybe it took them by surprise because they weren’t expecting that. Maybe they were expecting Jesus to grab a bucket or pan and start bailing out water. Or grab an oar and start rowing.
Whatever they were expecting, it certainly didn’t seem to be Him speaking to the storm and the storm obeying Him. They weren’t ready for this level of power and authority. They weren’t expecting to see the miraculous. When His disciples saw that, they were completely and totally amazed. So much so that they exclaimed in amazement, in unison, “What Manner of Man is This?”
Today, we’re in the same boat. We’re seasoned Christians. We’ve been serving the LORD for years upon years, yet when a storm hits us (even a huge storm threatening to sink the ship), we become fearful and forget who is in the ship with us. It wasn’t that the disciples didn’t know who Jesus was. It wasn’t that the disciples had never heard that Jesus was the Messiah; that’s why they were following Him. When the winds and the waves began to roar, and the ship seemed as if it was going to sink, their faith began to sink in the midst of the storm.
Life isn’t always going to be sunshine and light rain. Sometimes life throws us storms that threaten to overcome and sink everything that we have. Sometimes this includes our own lives, but that doesn’t mean that we allow fear to replace our faith. Just as the disciples weren’t alone on the ship, we aren’t alone in life. God Himself abides in us. The power of God flows through us. The creator of the wind, waves, and our ship is right with us. And if we allow Him, He will calm the storm for us; all we have to do is speak to it with the authority given to us in His name. Peace. Love. Go Forth and Speak to the Wind.
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