Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” ~ Mark 4:36-41
Rain and hail pounding on the windows, lightning flashing across the sky, thunder booming from every direction. Last night I watched out my window as hail filled my yard up to the point of looking like snow and my house was pelted by a summer storm fiercer than I’ve seen in a while. Storms like this can be unbelievably loud, so it was no surprise that a few minutes into it, I heard my little boy crying in his room.
Immediately, I went in and picked up him up, using the excuse to spend some time rocking and cuddling him. He is almost never still when he’s awake and being rocked to sleep is something he usually has no interest in. So suffice to say, cuddle time is usually fleeting. But with the weather outside rattling the house, he was happy to curl up in my arms, yawn and rest with me. We rocked until the storm subsided, and then I put him back to bed. He went right back to sleep, peaceful as can be. And when the storm came back even louder than before, he managed to sleep right through it.
While I was rocking him, I couldn’t help but think how thankful I was that I can be here to hold him when storms get loud. That I want to be present to comfort him when things are scary, to rock and hold him and let him know that everything is going to be okay. It makes me think how much our Heavenly Father must want to do the same for us. He wants to be there for us, to hold and comfort us when things are rough and our world is rocked by the tempests of life.
And as the night wore on, the storm eventually blew itself out. The water pouring down my street slowed down and the rain no longer fell in sideways sheets. The lightning ceased and things grew quiet. I thought about the storms that we endure in life and how intensely scary they may seem in the moment, but much like natural storms, they too eventually die down and life returns to normal. Yes, there may be lingering effects of the storm, as we’ve all seen in the news lately storms can do plenty of destruction, but the storm doesn’t stay and continue to pound away. After some time, the storm will move away and life can go on. While picking up the pieces from a storm like this can be overwhelming and difficult, we have to remember that God is with us through the whole process.
My little boy showed me how easy it is to sleep peaceful even when the storms blow. He knew that I would be there for him, so he didn’t need to worry. I need to do the same with my Heavenly Father. I know He will be here for me, so I shouldn’t panic and worry, allowing sleepless nights to exacerbate the troubles I am facing. Rather, I should turn my worries and cares over to Him, and rest peacefully in the knowledge that He is here for me.