Peace! Be Still!

Yesterday was fairly nice. It was a cool Fall day, but the sun was shining. However, the previous few days we had some pretty strong winds accompanied by plenty of rain. As I walked within view of the water this past Saturday I enjoyed hearing the sound of the waves crashing against the beach and watching some of the boats tossed about by the boisterous waves whipped up by the wind. I was even challenged in my walking by the force of the wind against me. All this brought to mind the words of the hymn “Master, The Tempest Is Raging” (by Mary A. Baker and Haratio R. Palmer, 1874), a hymn apparently inspired by the story of Jesus and His disciples in a boat on a storm tossed sea. As I continued to walk, the tempest was raging and the waves were billowing. Where I was at the time, I had no shelter from the wind.

Reading the account in Mark’s Gospel we find the disciples filled with fear as the storm raged around them. Bear in mind four of them had been fishermen and were familiar with the sea. What was Jesus doing? He was peacefully sleeping. The disciples, in their alarm and perhaps wonder as to how Jesus could be so CALM at such a time, woke Him.

We then read…
“And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and THERE WAS A GREAT CALM.” ( Mark 4:39 ESV)

Was the GREAT CALM of the sea probably not also matched by the GREAT CALM within the disciples as they looked at the sea and at Jesus in awe and wonder? More than the sea around them, the disciples needed to have their fears CALMED within. They needed to remember Who was in the boat with them. We also need to keep in mind the One Who is in our life with us in order to not become so anxious and agitated when things are not going as smoothly as we would prefer.

This past weekend was a pretty full one. I had some extra things on my plate as well as studies and outlines to finish up. As I tried to maximize my study time I was faced with the frustration of one of my lesson files on the computer deciding not to open. Fortunately I had printed out the work I had already completed, so I at least had a copy to work from. Nevertheless, time spent having to redo some of my work was highly aggravating since it meant more time out of an already busy schedule. On top of this I was struggling with a cold. To say the least I was buffeted by a real sense of lack of peace as a tempest of frustration welled up from within me.

It is not life’s storms around me that often create the biggest challenge to me, but the ones that rise from within myself. What must I continue to bear in mind? The fact that things generally work out. My Sunday morning sermon was titled “What Lack I?” from Matthew 19:16-22. It will be preached next Sunday because one thing I ended up “lacking” (due to my cold) was a voice. I instead shared a shorter focus and we did a little more congregational singing. In the end everything that needed to be done through the past week and the weekend did get done.

So many times when I have an already busy workload and extra things come up, though priorities sometimes get shifted, God always seems to help me get done what needs to be completed. When the tempest of frustration begins to rock me, that’s when I need to remember this. I need to look away from myself and the troubles of the moment and hear the Lord’s words, “Peace! Be still!” I’m not alone. There is plenty of reason for a GREAT CALM to be experienced. There is One greater than me Who is in control. “Peace! Be Still!”

Have a great day FINDING THE CALM IN SPITE OF THE STORMS!
Carl

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