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)

Have we ever invited Jesus into our lives, more fully into our present situation only to encounter an unexpected storm? With embarrassment we find ourselves pleading with Jesus to act on our behalf, the tempest raging in our life is too great for us. The disciples took Jesus with them into the boat, trained fishermen, professional boatsmen, and yet they rediscovered their human frailty and inability to handle the forces of nature.

We do not find ourselves literally in a boat with Jesus clinging for our lives, but we do encounter those cloudbursts in our souls where we desperately need Jesus the storm silencer to speak, “Peace! Be Still!” And He is there. He is ready, but are we? Knowing the response Jesus gives his disciples, questioning their faith, we avoid turning to Jesus until the last possible moment. We don’t want to hear those stinging words from Jesus, but the windstorm will only grow stronger and our escape from danger smaller.

Jesus understands our weakness. We invited Him into the boat, but He entered into it knowing the storm ahead. Jesus is not sleeping but awaiting us to cry out to Him. Jesus the storm silencer is waiting for us to seek His Lordship in our storm. Do we need to reach our breaking point before we will recognize that Jesus cares for us and is ready to calm our anxiety within His sovereignty? Jesus will speak peace into our souls even while we are still in the center of the sea, the middle of our situations.

Jesus, help me fix my eyes on you and abandon my pride that keeps me from experiencing your peace in my storms.