Scripture
50They were all terrified when they saw him.But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage! I am here! 51Then he climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped. They were totally amazed, 52for they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in. Mark 6:50-52
Observation
Mark takes makes a specific connection between the miracle of the of the loaves and the miracle of the calming of the storm. What’s the lesson the disciples were missing? With Jesus the impossible becomes possible, the lack becomes surplus, the obstacles become opportunities, the storms become sign posts to the glory of God. Jesus is all in all everything we need all the time everywhere. Even as I write that and I know that I often find myself doubting that. Like the disciples I see the crowds filled with need and focus on my finite supply rather than His infinite provision. Like the disciples I see the waves and the storm and the water logged boat and He is nowhere to be found. Notice, that even though the disciples couldn’t see Him, He could see them. “48He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves. About three o’clock in the morning. Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, 49but when they saw him walking on the water, they cried out…” Why was Jesus about to walk by? Here’s the lesson our hard hearts miss and why our faith flags in the face of trials… Jesus is waiting for us to call out to Him! In the case of the feeding of the 5,000 and the silencing of the storm our job is to cry out to Jesus and His job is to respond… and He will always respond. Maybe not in the way or the timing we are expecting, but Jesus will always respond to the cries of His children (Psalm 34:17).
Application
This morning I was sitting on the Redding, Oregon tarmac waiting for the plane to take me out of this 23 degree weather and back to warm and sunny San Diego. I like the snow as long as I can see it and then leave it. The captain spoke to the passengers on the plane and made it clear that we could not take off until the wings were de-iced. Sure enough, the wings were covered with ice and this can be very dangerous. From what I read, airplane wings are designed in a specific shape so they can take off safely. Snow and ice change the shape of the wings which can diminish the effectiveness of the wing's lift. The detrimental effects of ice is true not only for flight, but also for our faith. If we aren’t careful we become like the disciples in today’s passage whose faith had iced over in the face of the storm even though they had witnessed the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. When we aren’t honest about the thick layer of cynicism that has grown over our soul after so many storms we can end up treating Jesus just like his hometown of Nazareth…”5And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6And he was amazed at their unbelief.” I was just marveling with my brother this week about our the childlike faith we walked in when we were younger and how careful and calculated we have become. Our faith was meant to fly and sit on the tarmac. If I’ve stopped calling out to Jesus the first prayer I need to pray is, “Jesus, show me the areas where, through disappointment, discouragement and fatigue I have stopped flying and have started playing it safe.”
Prayer
Lord, I was meant to soar, to face down storms, and feed the masses. Forgive me for becoming cold, calculating, and careful with my faith expression. I call out to You for the big impossible storms facing so many that I love today!
