Luke 8:22-25^– One day He and His disciples got into a boat, and He told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the lake.” So they set out, ²³ and as they were sailing He fell asleep. Then a fierce windstorm came down on the lake; they were being swamped and were in danger. ²⁴ They came and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to die!” Then He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves. So they ceased, and there was a calm. ²⁵ He said to them, “Where is your faith?”

They were fearful and amazed, asking one another, “Who can this be? He commands even the winds and the waves, and they obey Him!” (HCSB)

I am listening to the thunder roll as the rain pounds against my window. It’s the season for hard storms where I live and no one can stop them from coming, much like the storms in life. Some people believe if your faith in God is strong enough you will be immune from life’s storms, but the Bible does not teach that. The storm in Luke 8:23 was probably what we would call “a raging storm”, the darkness only broken by lightening bolts flashing across the sky. I am not surprised the disciples were afraid; I’d be surprised if they weren’t! Storms can create panic that causes more damage than the actual storm, but in Isaiah 41:10 God tells us not to panic, that He has a firm grip on us. Storms force us to cry out to God for help and Psalm 34:17 tells us that God is listening and will rescue us. Picture the scene of Luke 8:23 – Jesus is so contently napping that He has a small smile and a soft snore; meanwhile the men are franticly pacing and wringing their hands in fear and confusion. I always picture Jesus in verse 25 like a daddy getting up from his nap because the children can’t play nicely together. He says to Storm, the child causing the uproar, “STOP IT” and Storm goes from teasing to contrite. Then the daddy turns to Disciple, the crying child, and says “Why do you get so overwrought when you know he can’t hurt you?”  The disciples were terrified in verse 24 because they had lost sight of verse 22 – Jesus had already told them they were going to the other side. In John 16:33. Jesus says we will have storms in life but assures us He has control over the storms because “He commands even the winds and the waves and they obey Him.”