Did you ever have one of those days?  You know, one of THOSE days when you were tired, when you had had enuf, when you just wanted a break?  When you wanted to get away?  Me, too.  And apparently Jesus and the disciples had them on occasion.  In the Gospel reading for today, we find that Jesus wanted to ‘cross over to the other side’ of the Sea, so that he could have some time alone, away from the crowds, and with his disciples, for some quality time I would imagine.  The disciples were all for it, and away they went.  Jesus needed a break.  He gets in the boat, and goes to sleep.

And then it stormed…..  Not just your average run of the mill storm, but a STORM…..at sea even.  Thunder.  BOOM!  Lightening.  FLASH!  Waves so high over the little boat that it was tossed about.  CRASH!  And to top it off, the boat started filling up with water.  SLOSH…..Sink?  And Jesus slept on.  And on.  And on.

And then it happened.  The disciples, those stalwart fishermen, panicked; so much so that they wanted Jesus to panic, too.  So, they woke him.

Now, I dunno about Jesus, and I’m pretty sure they didn’t have a Keurig on that boat, but anyone who knows me well, knows, that no matter what, one does NOT speak to the Bishop when he first wakes up until after his (at least) second cup of coffee.  Can you not see Jesus?  He throws the blanket off and says, WHAT?

The disciples point out the storm, Jesus’s eyes focus, and then he gets it.  He understands what all the fuss is about…..and then, like so many of us, he says,

“Really?”

I can just imagine him rolling his eyes, and then saying to the storm, in much the way I talk to our cats, says, “Stoppit!”  The storm quiets, Jesus  grumbles about nonbelieving disciples, and goes back to sleep…..and the (nonbelieving) disciples are tripped!

Y’all….we’re in the midst of a storm now, even as I type.  Many of us are fearful and dismayed.  Many of us are angry.  Many of us are in turmoil.  And rightly so.  With so much uncertainty on the horizon, many of us feel that we are in danger of sinking.  And, I rather suspect, that many of us wonder if God is, indeed, sleeping, if the Creator exists at all.

But ya know, I can assure you that God is very much awake, and involved, in our lives.  Or at least the Redeemer wants to be.  How, you ask?  By living through and with and in us.  By us showing forgiveness. Charity.  Good will.  Reaching out. Love.  By standing up for what is right and good and true.  By peacefully protesting.  By donating time and money to those who are less fortunate that we ourselves.  By examining what we believe, what we hold dear, and comparing that to what Jesus has taught us that we SHOULD hold dear and believe. 

This storm is far from over.  FAR from over.  Before this storm ends, hearts will have to change, attitudes will have to change, laws, rules, regulations, the government, will have to change, society will have to change.  And before any of that can happen, WE will have to change.  We will, ALL of us, have to examine ourselves carefully, and honestly, to find the roots of our prejudice, our fears of those who are ‘other’ than ourselves.  We will have to look with new eyes at all of those with whom we come into contact, ALL of them, EVERY ONE of them, and strive to find the Jesus in each of them.  The Jesus in us must reach out to the Jesus in our brothers and sisters, regardless of race, creed, color, gender, gender identity, sexual preference, ability or disability, political affiliation, or any of the other million and one things we use to denigrate, disgrace, and damn our brothers and sisters.

Like the disciples, we will be afraid.  Sometimes we may even panic.  But I can assure you that, like the disciples, we can go to Jesus.  And when we do, he will say to us, “Peace.  Be still.”  And in the calm and quiet that results from our trust in Him, we will be able, with full hearts, to grow, and to learn to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Mrs. Cecil Frances Alexander (1818–1895) was one of the most beloved hymn writers of the nineteenth century, and she wrote a hymn that, I believe, is more than fitting for us today.

1 Jesus calls us o’er the tumult
of our life’s wild, restless sea;
day by day His sweet voice soundeth,
saying, “Christian, follow me.”
Jesus calls us from the worship
of the vain world’s golden store,
from each idol that would keep us,
saying, “Christian, love me more.”

2 In our joys and in our sorrows,
days of toil and hours of ease,
still He calls, in cares and pleasures,
“Christian, love me more than these.”
Jesus calls us- by Thy mercies,
Savior, may we hear Thy call;
give our hearts to Thine obedience,
serve and love Thee best of all.