Inspirational Sunday

"And He arose, and rebuked the wind and said unto the sea, 'Peace be still'. And the wind ceased and there was a great calm." ~Mark 4:39

Rae's Thought: There's a part in the movie, Perfect Storm, where Mark Walhberg's character is in the middle of the sea, struggling to stay above water. The boat he was on has gone down and he's surrounded by fierce, hurricane winds. He looks up and sees the blue sky. It's peaceful, despite what's going on around him. He's in the eye of the hurricane.

This week's scripture comes from the story of Jesus and His disciples in the middle of the sea. While Jesus was asleep in the stern of the boat, a furious squall (hurricane-like weather) came up. The waves crashed over the boat almost causing it to capsize. The disciples were scared. They ran to Jesus asking if He cared whether they lived or died. This is where verse 39 comes in. Jesus got up, spoke, and everything calmed.

The hurricane is one of the most destructive forces of nature with winds that can reach more than 155 mph and, yet, in the eye of the storm, it's calm with no thunderstorms and little to no cloud cover. It's the calmest part of the hurricane.

When I read this, I think of the hurricanes in my life - the troubles that come at me with the force of more than 155 mph. Every single person on this earth will experience life's hurricanes - some more destructive than others. The difference is the eye of the storm. Children of God can have the most destructive life-storm known to man, yet still have that peace of God that surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7). We'd experience our very own eye of the storm. Because Jesus is the Son of God and is all-powerful, the clouds are unable to form around Him. Jesus is kind of like our umbrella. He protects and shields those who love Him. We may get a little wet from the storm, but we won't get drenched or drown in the waters. When He's in the midst of your storms, you can still see the blue sky. You can still experience that same peace as the character in Perfect Storm. You can feel that there is hope.