Freaking Out on a Sea of Despair.....Someone Wake up Jesus!

The church nave (the central part of the church) is often referred to as an upside down ship. In a traditional setting if we stop and look at the high pitched roof with beams crisscrossing the space inbetween, we can easily imagine the parish building itself as a vast ship; a ship named Casa di Dio (God’s House). God’s House is a refuge that often rides the stormy waves and perilous seas of life, tossed about by the winds of fury. And while God remains faithful, it is the crew and passengers that seem to consistently fall into fear and disarray. The winds and violent storms of life often arise out of nowhere, raining down doubt and ambiguity upon our lives. Yet despite the fact that God’s House takes on water and on occasion appears to ride low in the waters of despair, Christ is our ever present Captain and source of strength. Jesus will keep us afloat providing us with comfort and peace (when we allow him too!). We often forget that in Christ Jesus the storms will pass and the seas will calm. But just like the disciples on that frightening evening as they were caught in a vicious storm in the middle of the Sea of Galilee, we too find ourselves in panic mode and experiencing a whole range of terrifying fear.

The disciples were mostly sea worthy men. Several of them were seasoned fishermen and would certainly know and have experienced the temperamental mood swings of the sea. The Sea of Galilee is notorious for storms which brew and move in literally out of nowhere. As the Wind blows south down the Jordan River and through deep canyons that feed into the large lake, it picks up intensity and speed which it ravenously releases onto the open water. Fishermen in this region are all too familiar with the fickle nature of Galilee. It can be calm one moment and in the very next, a literal rain of terror. This is why it is so perplexing in Mark’s Gospel that these seasoned fishermen who are now Jesus’ disciples would so easily panic in this storm. One would think or assume they would be right at home on the temperamental sea. Obviously this was no ordinary storm.

As we read the Gospel of Mark a reality begins to surface and take shape. Perhaps this was no ordinary storm. It was made more intense and terrifying because the disciples were increasingly seeking and finding security in the presence of Jesus, and not their own selves. A subtle spiritual transference was quietly occurring as Jesus’ followers began to place their true reliance on him. The Adversary would certainly wish to have derailed God’s divine mission of hope and freedom found in Christ. Even though Satan couldn’t trick, intimidate or mislead Jesus, there was always the human element that was most vulnerable and susceptible to the Devil’s deception. Since he couldn’t tempt or derail Jesus and his mission, the old Adversary attacks what he perceives to be the weak link in God’s creation. You got it! The Church; the very place of refuge and hope is now the primary target of assault by Satan. And believe me, the Adversary often has a “field day.”

Riding on the stormy seas of gossip, schism, rumors and personal motive, the Adversary swoops down on God’s House like a sudden and violent storm. I imagine out there on the Sea of Galilee as Jesus rested peacefully in the stern, the storm that arose probably brought out the worst in the disciples personalities. These men remind us that in times of trouble and fear, if we are not spiritually grounded in a life of faith and service to Christ Jesus, the very brokenness of our humanity surfaces, causing the strong personal desire to control our environment. I’m certain that on that fishing boat there were more than a few barbs exchanged between the disciples. I am sure that the anxiety created out of faithless fear and self-preservation brought every raw emotion and hostile remark to the surface. This became an intense and driving storm, one that threatened the very life of the crew and ship. The Adversary threw a huge tempest in their path and waited for the crew and passengers to self-destruct. But as we all know, Jesus didn’t allow that to happen. With only a two words, “Be still” the rough seas calmed and the storm was dispelled.

How often do we call on the presence of Christ to calm the storms we face in and outside of the church? The disciples intuitively turned to Jesus in their despair, which speaks well of their reliance on him, yet they still struggled to understand his identity as the Messiah; the Christ; the One to Come; the Divine Liberator and Pioneer of Faith. They continued to struggle with that innate need to control their environment. They continued to struggle with the concept of faith. And guess what? 2000 years later we still do the exact same thing. Its easy to claim to love, follow and have faith in Jesus; particularly when life’s seas are smooth. Its easy to get along with one another in the church when life is calm and folks go unchallenged or unthreatened by change, authority or conflict. However, at the first sight of rain this fine balance is easily upset, as we often forget that Christ is in the stern with us.

Most of us are familiar with John Wesley; the great 18th c. evangelist to the American English colonies. He spread the Good News of Jesus faithfully in the age called “The Great Awakening.” Trust me; John Wesley could hardly have been called a faint-hearted or easily intimidated person. But there were times when even he lost his nerve and struggled with his faith. During one of Wesley's several Atlantic crossings, a frighteningly fierce storm broke out. The violent nature of this storm was terrible. It pitched and tossed the ship about on its rough seas; threatening to sink her along with the crew and passengers. While Wesley and others clung to their bunks in fear and doubt, a community of Moravians, traveling to their new homeland, calmly gathered to hold their daily worship service. Despite the vicious storm and its fury, they gathered in sincere faith to sing praises to God. Watching these Moravians, who were unperturbed by the hounding winds and crashing waves, Wesley realized he was witnessing a truly “waterproof faith.” From that moment on, John Wesley prayed that God would give him the ability to likewise ride out life's storms with the same confidence he witnessed in the Moravians.

Whatever storms we face in our personal lives; whatever tempests threaten those of us sailing aboard this vessel called the Church; know this – Christ is our faithful Captain who calms the winds, restores peace and brings comfort. Trust in Christ and allow him to be our navigator. The storms will come and go, yet Jesus is calm and steady. Throw all your personal desires for control overboard and embrace the winds of change. Unencumbered, Jesus will lead us into a deeper, richer and more nurturing life of faith and service.