…when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.”

…And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”

Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”  (Mark 4: 35-41)

*****

First, Jesus and His disciples got into the boat, and Jesus said, “Let’s go to the other side.” Then He curled up and took a nap.

When the storm began to rage, they said to Jesus, “Lord save us! Don’t you care that we are about to perish!”

Jesus responded to them, “Where is your faith?”

It appears that He is questioning the fact that they were terrified by the storm. But what if there was more to it? What if He was addressing more than their fear of the storm?

At this point they had been walking with Him for some time. They had seen Him heal the sick, they had listened to His parables and heard Him explain what they meant. He had even called them His family, while His own mother and brothers waited outside to see Him. They had spent intimate time with Him walking, talking, laughing and sharing.

What if the question He was really asking them was, “Do you still not know who I Am? Do you still not trust that when I say we are going to the other side, WE ARE GOING TO THE OTHER SIDE!”  In fact, their next comment was, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”

What if what He really wanted them to get, was who He was and what that meant?

Yes, the winds may blow, and the rain may pour down, the boat may sink to the bottom of the sea. But if Jesus said they were going to the other side, nothing would stop them, because ‘I AM’ said they were going to the other side!

Have you ever been terrified? I have. And I can’t say I handled it any better than the disciples.

What if I am doing the same thing the disciples did? What if I am allowing the storms of this moment to obscure His promises?

What if He is waiting for me to realize that when He tells me we are going to the other side, we are indeed going to the other side! What if He is waiting for me to realize what it means to be in Him and have Him in me? What if he wants me to begin to see myself as heaven sees me, not as the world may see me? What if He wants me to learn to live above my circumstances instead of beneath them? What if He is waiting to give me a faith upgrade in my circumstance, if I will only look for it?

What if?

Ask Him!

© Sharon E. Coleman 2013