The famous story of Jesus calming the stormy sea and saving his disciples on the Sea of Galilee is a truly dramatic scene, one that is straight out of a movie: There are huge, crashing waves, loud screams of terror, a capsizing boat, and Jesus…..asleep during it all.
In utter fear, the disciples yell to Jesus and wake him up saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” Jesus replies, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” and then rebukes the winds and the sea bringing about a great calm.
We too can have a lack of faith during the storms of our lives and forget that Jesus is with us in our boats. When we face storms of deep sorrow from the loss of a loved one, anxiety about a family member who is far from the Church or loneliness that comes with old age, we might be tempted to doubt the Lord’s love for us.
But…by virtue of our baptism, Jesus Christ lives in us and is always present to us even if he appears to be sleeping.
When we face the rain of insults, the buffets of fear and the lightning of anger, we have to wake up Christ within us who is always near. Saint Augustine beautifully wrote, “The faith in Christ in your heart, is like Christ in the boat…wake Christ up, rouse your faith! … Christ awakes and speaks to you…Believe what has been said to you, and there will be a tremendous calm in your heart.” Hear the Lord say to you, “I am with you, do not be afraid.” Christ sees beyond the storm as he often uses them to increase our faith and perseverance as well as to help us trust in his power and goodness.
Like a muscle that is strengthened by repetitive weightlifting, we can strengthen our spiritual muscles of faith and trust by doing two things.
The first way is by making acts of faith when we feel terrified, worried, or are going through some difficulty. Something little like saying, “Jesus I trust in you” or “God, I firmly believe that you love me and are with me.” Or perhaps it can be an action, such as pushing yourself to do something scary but within your abilities or sharing your love for Jesus with someone. The more we do these things, the easier they get.
A second way of strengthening our faith and trust is to prayerfully reflect on the past times that God has helped us through a challenging or fearful moment and give thanks to him. Like aloe is to a sun burn, gratitude is the perfect treatment for worry. I encourage you to write down a list of the times God has helped you… I bet you will be surprised how long it will get.
So whatever storm you are going through today, know that you are not alone. Jesus Christ is in your boat and wants to be awakened by your faith to still your hearts. He is your anchor, guiding light, and perfect calm and always comes to the rescue.