“Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?”Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” Matthew 8:24-27
“Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?” Isaiah 40:12
If you have ever stood on the ocean’s shoreline or waded through the ocean’s waves, you have no doubt marveled at the sheer power and energy of waves. They slam and crash and pull back with power unmatched.
The pent up power in the ocean is amazing. The force that water can exhibit and the sheer destruction that it can wreak is mind blowing. The ocean, to man, is seemingly limitless, untamable, vast, relentless, and sometimes fearsome. Despite the ocean’s dauntless and reckless power, the Lord, Creator of all heaven and earth, has the ability to bridle the vast blue expanses.
Standing at the ocean’s shoreline and scanning its reach makes us marvel at the sheer immensity of the mighty blue. We are so tiny compared to the giant ocean and completely powerless to master it. It’s amazing to think that the same God who created the winds and the waves and the vastness of space also created us, with such careful detail and attention.
At the time of creation, with only His voice, God gathered the great expanses of the waters together in specific bodies and placed land where it should go. With only the words of His mouth, God tames the untamable. He limits the limitless and bridles the unbridled.
While Jesus was traveling with His disciples on a boat the waters began to swell and rage. The disciples, who were weathered fishermen, trembled with fear as the sea threatened to swallow them. The waves were surely fierce and strong, the winds screeching, the sky ominous, and the sounds deafening. Their boat surely would have been heaving and tipping, shuddering and hinting at capsizing. With His gentle, sure, and powerful voice, Jesus calmed the raging sea. The disciples were astonished at the miraculous sea subsiding. They well knew the power that abides in the sea. Power to tear through land, to break down edifices, to rip new avenues, to capsize and to crush ships. Power to bury them in watery graves.
The disciples, although they were with Jesus for some time before this storm, knew Jesus’ abilities but they didn’t understand Him in a raw and utterly powerful way. They were stunned at His heavenly power- His control over the wild sea. In this miracle, the power of Jesus truly hit close to home because the disciples knew first hand how deadly the sea can be. In the face of certain peril, the atmosphere and the circumstances were changed by the gentle words of Jesus because His beloved called out for help. Perhaps this was the first time some of them realized how wholly Jesus was both man and God- a man with all authority of heaven ready to move at the sound of His voice.
Riding the waves, letting them crash into us, and observing the ocean as a whole allows us an opportunity to ponder the power of our creator. Our God has the power to create the world, the seas, the land, and space. Despite the immensity of all of creation God is mindful of us all. His power is uncontainable and uncalculable. There is no way to measure His might and He is willing to accept us and fight for us. The God who calms the seas loves us with an everlasting love.
If God holds the oceans in the cup of His hand and calms the wind and seas with His words, how mighty and how enormous must His power and His presence be? Pondering our minuteness and His infiniteness, we are profoundly faced with truth- He has everything under control. We are so blessed to have a Creator who sees us in the midst of the huge and complicated creation that He holds together. Thank the Lord for reminders as simple as the blue horizon or the gentle lapping seaside that reminds us how truly amazing the One who created it all really is. When the hardships come crashing on your ship like ravaging waves, remember that there was a time when God split the sea for His children to escape captivity. He literally split the sea, divided drop from drop, and held it apart until a caravan of millions safely crossed the ocean on the dry seabed. Nothing is too hard for God.
“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” Psalm 8:3-4
“And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so.” Genesis 1:9
Judith Cooley teaches Language Arts and Drama. Follow her Facebook page @pondervotional for more encouragement.
