Matthew 8:23-27
23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”
The disciples were afraid, for they were caught in a storm and the situation seemed hopeless to them. So they did the right thing and went to Jesus, who calmed the storm for them. But Jesus also questioned the root of their fear: "Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" (verse 26). Why are we afraid, why do we doubt God's good blessings? Is our faith too small? Jesus, the Son of God, was in the boat with them, yet they thought that life was out of control, that God was not watching them. This is a practical form of atheism, where we intellectually believe God exists, but we don't really believe that He is actively watching over us. Yet God is with us in the midst of our problems. If we could truly get a grasp on that fact, that God is with us, we wouldn't have the same anxiety about our problems. It is often this anxiety that drives us to comfort ourselves in unhealthy ways, so learning to trust God's presence can enable us to stay with Him rather than running to old patterns of self-sufficiency.
Heavenly Father, help me to not fear but to trust Your presence and goodness.
23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”
The disciples were afraid, for they were caught in a storm and the situation seemed hopeless to them. So they did the right thing and went to Jesus, who calmed the storm for them. But Jesus also questioned the root of their fear: "Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?" (verse 26). Why are we afraid, why do we doubt God's good blessings? Is our faith too small? Jesus, the Son of God, was in the boat with them, yet they thought that life was out of control, that God was not watching them. This is a practical form of atheism, where we intellectually believe God exists, but we don't really believe that He is actively watching over us. Yet God is with us in the midst of our problems. If we could truly get a grasp on that fact, that God is with us, we wouldn't have the same anxiety about our problems. It is often this anxiety that drives us to comfort ourselves in unhealthy ways, so learning to trust God's presence can enable us to stay with Him rather than running to old patterns of self-sufficiency.
Heavenly Father, help me to not fear but to trust Your presence and goodness.