Today’s scripture: Luke 8:22-25 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Brent Walsh):
Do you ever wonder how many times Jesus woke up grumpy?
Jesus must have been just plain worn out. He had spent the entire day teaching the people. Now he just wanted a bit of peace and quiet before arriving at his next destination where, once again, he would be accosted with more crowds, hungry for his every word. He was probably just getting into a nice deep sleep when he was shaken awake by a panic-stricken disciple.
In Sunday School, we are shown a picture of a smiling Jesus with flowing robes and perfect hair. He is stretching his beautifully-manicured hands out over the waves and there is a bubble above his head that says, “Peace, be still.” What a serene way to handle the situation, don’t you think?
I get quite a different image in my head now. I see big, burly men who have spent their entire adult lives on the water now running around on deck in a frenzy. I see them frantically throwing things overboard in a last-ditch effort to keep the boat afloat. One of them uses a few precious seconds to burst into the cargo hold where Jesus is sleeping and scream, “Wake up! Wake up! The boat is sinking and we’re all going to die!”
Now I see Jesus stumbling up the stairs half asleep and not at all amused with the chaos around him. He hasn’t bathed lately, his robes are tangled around him, and he has a bad case of bed head.
This passage doesn’t say that he made an easy-going suggestion to the storm, but rather that he rebuked it. It’s as if Jesus stands in the middle of all this pandemonium and yells, “QUIET!!!” At once, the winds die down, the waves subside, and the boat suddenly becomes buoyant again. As he heads back down to the cargo hold, he snaps at his disciples, “Where’s your faith?” He might as well have said, “You woke me up for THIS?”
We may carry in our minds the pictures of Jesus we were introduced to in Sunday School — but we’re not forced to carry those images with us the rest of our lives. We might be comfortable with a serene and pretty Jesus, but that might not be the most realistic representation of who Jesus really is.
Thought for the day: Jesus, I want to know who You really are. Show me where my preconceived ideas get in the way of knowing the real You.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the guidelines on the How to Pray page.