Day 6 – Circumstances
“And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 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. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
Mark 4:37-41
Why? If you cared, then why would this be happening? Many times, our circumstances cause us to doubt. They are overwhelming and eclipse things that we know to be true.
Circumstances can cause us to quit looking to the Messiah and become fixated on what is around us. The weary world creeps in, and we begin to doubt.
The truth is there. Jesus is in the boat, although things aren’t going as these experienced fishermen thought they should. Jesus didn’t wake up and lay into them. He brought peace, and then he turned and asked them why they had forgotten.
The disciples have been with Jesus for a while, and they have forgotten many of the miracles and signs they have seen Jesus do. The trials of the present should not eclipse the truths of the past.
Inward: Immanuel, what do you want me to know? What are the circumstances that may be eclipsing the truths that I know about who God is? In what areas am I doubting that God may care, and why?
Outward: Immanuel, what do you want me to do? Is there someone around me who has storms raging, someone who needs God to step in and say peace be still? May I pray that your presence brings peace that only you can.
