A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were frightened. John 6:18, 19

A few years ago my husband and our boys were out in the canoe on Jordan Lake, and the wind picked up significantly. They had been on the water most of the day fishing, it was getting close to sunset, and the wind proved to be an obstacle in them making it back to shore before dark. I received a call from my husband that went something like this:

“Hey, Jess. We’re in the middle of Jordan Lake trying to paddle our way back to shore, but the wind is too strong. We’re just going to let the wind push us to the other side, and it’d sure be nice if you could meet us there to give us a ride back to my car!”

After feeding the five thousand, Jesus sent the disciples ahead in the boat while he went up the mountainside to pray (Matthew 14:22). The positioning of the Sea of Galilee at the bottom of several high hills makes it prone to sudden storms and bursts of wind. Surely the disciples knew this; certainly Jesus did. The disciples did as they were told, and sure enough, they encountered a storm and rough waters.

Jesus kept eyes on his friends and disciples even from shore.  When he walked out to them on the water, they were afraid--now not only of the storm, but of the “ghost” they saw walking toward them in the middle of the rough waters! They had just witnessed firsthand the power of Jesus in feeding five thousand people with two fish and five small loaves of bread. Once they realized it was Him coming toward them on the water and invited him into their boat, they witnessed his power again when the storm stopped.

My husband used a cell phone to call me for help, but we don’t need a device to get Jesus’ attention. We are always within his gaze. He’s with us always, even when we don’t realize He’s there or forget what He’s done for us in the past. We always have access to His power!

Obedience to God doesn’t exempt us from tough times. On the contrary, sometimes obedience means heading into a storm! Storms don’t negate His power to rescue us from tough spots or to help us navigate our way through them. Why do you think we have a hard time remembering His power in the midst of stormy weather?

If you’d like to read or re-read the overview/summary of this week’s passage, you can find it here.