WATCHWORD:
22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:22-33
23 Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. 27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!” Matthew 8:23-27
Meditation:
Storms
The geography of the Sea of Galilee makes it subject to sudden and violent storms as the wind comes over the eastern mountains and drops suddenly onto the Sea. According to the weather service in that area, storms are likely when an east wind blows cool air over the warm air that covers the Sea, the cold air drops as the warm air rises and the sudden change can produce surprisingly furious storms in a short time, as it did in Jesus day. See Matthew 8.
A few more facts: The Sea of Galilee has many names – Sea of Kinnereth, Lake of Gennesaret, the Sea of Tiberias, and sometimes simply “the lake”. It lies 700 feet below sea level, is eight miles from Mount Arbel on the west to the Decapolis (called the Golan Heights today) on the east, and is 12 miles, north to south.
We know from scripture, that the economy of this area is based on fishing and all but one of the original disciples had been a fisherman. To be a successful fisherman on the sea of Galilee is to understand the idiosyncrasies of the sea and have the ability to cope with sudden storms.
So, when the boat, loaded with disciples and Jesus himself, was overtaken by a sudden storm, the disciples had the know-how and the experience to cope with most storms, but not this time. In desperation, they called on Jesus.
In a recent Church service, the pastor cited songwriter Jim Cole and quoted a line from his song Master of My Heart: “Master of this heart of mine, captain of the sea; you have calmed the angry waves. Could you calm the storm in me.” That is the point of this meditation, the storms within us. We all have them, at one time or another. Most of the time we can handle the winds and the waves. But there are times when the stresses of our everyday lives, the depression, the anxiety goes beyond our ability to cope and we come to the end of our rope. At that moment, in desperation, we call on the carpenter of Nazareth to do what we have been unable to do, achieve calmness and peace.
Here’s the question: Why do we wait for desperation to set in before we call on our Lord? Why is it that the simple act of giving stressors to the Lord, too often feels like a weakness in our human minds? It feels like we’re giving up and we don’t know what to do. We forget we are children of God, made in His image, equipped with the Holy Spirit within and brother to Jesus Christ. That’s a heck of a well-equipped cheerleading core at our disposal. To top it all off – We are loved! Know that, and act on it! Amen.
Closing Prayer:
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. Oh God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit instructs the hearts of the faithful, grant, that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever rejoice in his consolations. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Pilgrim’s Guide, Cursillos in Christianity)
