It is unbelievable but also deeply comforting to hear Jesus calm the storm with only a few words. It is also terrible and difficult to hear Jesus calm the storm with only a few words.
It’s beautiful and touches the depth of our souls to know that our Jesus, our God, can quell our fears so instantly. It truly taps into our foundational human need to feel safe. But it also recognizes our human smallness compared to the forces of nature on this earth we live on. Nature is so staggering in its power, it is a never changing fact that reveals our true helplessness.
But Jesus is much greater than all the power of nature; He can quell a storm that can only mean death. Knowing Jesus is greater than the most powerful forces we know is essential in believing that Jesus is in fact truly God.
But it’s also terribly hard to read this passage because we have all experienced fear, terror, and danger. We’ve felt the fear of the disciples; we’ve tried to awaken Our Lord and begged for safety; we’ve sent urgent cries to God for deliverance only to receive no answer. We did not have our fear taken away, not have terror removed, or be given deliverance from danger. We’ve suffered terribly and prayers for calm and protection have not been answered in a way that has prevented fear, terror, pain, and suffering.
It’s truly challenging to live with the reality that Jesus can command the waves of the sea and yet allow us to experience suffering in this life, but it’s a reality that the Christian life encompasses and holds. This truth and particularly this passage of the Gospel (Matthew 4:35-41) requires a lot from us. It requires faith and trust, but it also presents this paradox.
The first thing we can do is pray with these words and begin to ask what God wants to show us through both having faith in Him and suffering. We need to wrestle with our experience but also hear the words Christ wants to say to us now, wherever we are in the storm.
Jesus can calm the storm. // Christy IsingerClick to tweet
Are you struggling in a spiritual storm? Consider finding a spiritual director.
Christy Isinger is a cradle Catholic, wife, and mother of five teenagers from western Canada. During the short Canadian summers she tries to garden and grow flowers, while in the long cold winters she reads a lot of books, writes, and homeschools. Her Substack newsletter can be found at christyisinger.substack.com.
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