“One day [Jesus] got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side of the lake.’ So they set out, and as they sailed he fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger. And they went and woke him, saying, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm. He said to them, ‘Where is your faith?’ And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, ‘Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?’” Luke 8:22–25
It had been many days since Jesus’ disciples had a break and they’re exhausted. They’ve been preaching, teaching, tending to thousands of people, and taking care of the elderly and children.
You have to imagine their condition. They’re hot, hungry, grumpy, and one of them had probably rolled their ankle and was walking with a limp. There’s no convenience store for them to get a refrigerated drink or an urgent care center to tend to their injuries and ailments.
And now they find themselves rowing all night in the middle of a monstrous storm.
Could you imagine what it was like for them? It’s in the middle of the night. There are no lights on their boat or from a nearby seashore illuminating their path.
They’re rowing and rowing against the strong winds and pounding waves. They’re losing the battle. They’re making no progress.
They’re at the end of their ropes. And in a moment of desperation, the disciples finally move beyond their apparent hesitation and awaken Jesus from his sleep.
And they wake Jesus from his sleep shouting over the noise, “Master, master, we hate to awaken you, but there’s nothing else we can do. The boat is filling with water and we’re in danger.”
Jesus wakes up. Rubs his eyes with his hands. And calmly, yet sternly, takes action.
Awaking from his sleepy slumber, Jesus “rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm” (v. 24).
The storm didn’t gradually fade away—it came to a screeching halt.
I believe there’s something important for us to learn here.
Go to Jesus First
Life can and will be exhausting.
Family. Work. Church. Sports. School. Just from our day-to-day activity we become weary and exhausted, much like the disciples.
But then, out of nowhere, crisis comes. We find ourselves in the middle of a storm and we’re in danger. Many times we find ourselves doing the very same thing that the disciples did. We don’t go to Jesus first. We work and worry ourselves to the point of exhaustion. Finally, in a moment of desperation, we call out to Jesus.
What I would like to encourage you with today, which is something I haven’t practiced well myself, is go to Jesus first.
Go to Jesus. Go to Jesus in prayer. Go to Jesus in Scripture. Go to Jesus in song. Go to Jesus requesting his help.
Go to Jesus first who created and rules the world and is willing to help you in it.
This devotion is adapted from Pastor Mark’s June 2010 sermon, “Jesus Calms the Storm,” part 33 of the sermon series on Luke’s Gospel.
