“And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, Peace, be still! And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”
Mark 4: 37-41
As I was sitting on a little tugboat about to tip over, crashing through the wind and waves while shark diving, I was reminded of how powerful our God is. He commands even the wind and the waves. I found myself thinking of this story in Mark as I was on the boat, about how fearful the disciples were in that moment. That in their lack of faith, they had a lack of knowledge that EVERYTHING is controlled by God. He knows when the waves are going to crash, He knows when the wind is going to blow, He knows when I’m going to get sick, and He knows when we invite Him in the process. I have to look back at our shark adventure and think that He knew our little boat wouldn’t tip, but He wanted to tease us. I think God has a beautiful sense of humor (trust me, he always makes me do things I say I never will).
We serve a God who not only knows when the wind and the waves blow, but controls them. He can rebuke them. Every step of this journey God is teaching me more and more about faith. Faith in knowing His will is good, faith in trusting Him, faith in believing, faith in seeing Him move. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve written that word in my bible because of the countless examples in scripture it’s all about faith. It’s about faith when the wind and the waves crash down, it’s about faith when ministry isn’t what you thought it would be, it’s about faith when you see a new believer, and it’s about faith when you go diving with sharks. So next time I doubt, or I become fearful, I’ll remember that I serve a God who commands even the sea.
I never thought God would speak so much to me during shark diving, but then again I’m learning to never say never.
