Faith and Focus in the Storm
Changeable Conditions
Storms are something we are very familiar with in our land. They are a regular occurrence every year, sweeping in and battering our island. Storms are inevitable, not just meteorological ones but the storms we face in our Christian walk. At one moment, we are on the sunlit mountain top; we can see the way before us, God is so near to us, and we have peace and prosperity. But then dark clouds suddenly roll in, and the wind blows us in a direction we didn’t expect, into a valley of troubles. Our circumstances are like the weather in Ireland, very changeable. Maybe you are in the midst of a storm right now.
In Matthew 14 v 22-33, we are told of a time when the disciples were caught in a ferocious storm and were desperately fighting for their lives. At the mercy of the elements in a small fishing boat, stranded in the middle of the sea in pitch darkness. And worst of all, Jesus, who had delivered them in similar situations in the past, wasn’t with them this time. Maybe we can see ourselves in their experience. Do you often feel like you are struggling to keep your head above the water? Are you overwhelmed by what you’re up are up against? Are you becoming intensely aware of the feeble resources you have within yourself? Do you feel trapped in a circumstance without a visible light at the end of the tunnel? Does God seem far away?
We may have fair weather in parts of our journey through this life, yet we will meet with storms on the journey to our eternal home. In John 16 v 33, Jesus tells his disciples, “In this world you will have trouble”. They were to expect troubles. Jesus does not promise us that our lives will always be plain sailing. He doesn’t promise us that we will always be in good health or that we’ll always have a healthy bank account. Jesus does not guarantee that we will succeed in all our ventures or that we will be at peace with everyone, and everyone will be at peace with us. Our faith is not a vaccine that makes us immune to the problems of this world. No instead, Jesus warns us that storms will come. So in times of calm, don’t become complacent. Stay alert; storms can come suddenly.
A Sovereign Saviour
So, where was Jesus in the disciple’s time of need? Well, at that very moment, we are told that Jesus was up on a mountainside praying (v23). He is watching over his disciples, and he is praying for them. He is not unaware of the struggles they face. Nothing escapes his notice. Psalm 121 says, “He who keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps”.
We don’t have a weather forecast to tell what storms we’ll face this week, next week, this year, or next year – but isn’t it a great comfort to know that the Lord is sovereign over your storms and he is praying you through them.
Not only that, but Jesus has the power to save them. Boy, does he have the power to save them! The sea itself is no obstacle. He simply walks over it. Christ is sovereign over his creation, and at his command, the most basic elements of the natural world abandon their most fundamental qualities. Nothing will stop him from coming to the aid of his disciples.
For who can separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? … neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8 v 35, 38-39).
He comes to them at just the right time and relives the disciple’s fears by the power of his word. Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” (v27). Why do the disciples no longer need to be afraid? It’s because Jesus is with them. He will never leave or forsake his people, and nothing need be a terror to those who have Christ near them, not even the final enemy, death itself. For it will only be the usher that shows us into eternity with our saviour.
Faith and Focus
Then Peter steps out of the boat. You can see the other disciples trying to hold him back. What are you thinking, Peter! He’s lost his mind! But Peter steps out of the boat and comes to Jesus. Peter was bold, he was more forward than the rest of the disciples, he was impetuous and impulsive, and it often led to a rebuke from Jesus. Later in Matthew 16, when Peter tried to deter Jesus from going to the cross, Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me: you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” Jesus didn’t mince his words when a strong rebuke was needed. But there is no rebuke for Peter, saying, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” (v28). Peter is showing he trusts Jesus and is willing to venture from the safety of the ship when he hears his master’s call to come. Jesus gives us grace in our storms. Pray for God to make us bold in our faith in him, even in our storms.
God commanded Joshua, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1 v 9). Here Jesus gives a similar command “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” (v27)
But how can we be bold like this? How can we trust like this?
We have a border collie by the name of Sheba. There are many aspects of her behaviour you would not wish to emulate. She barks her head off whenever anyone leaves the house; she is scared of hoovers, electric toothbrushes and attacks bins. She takes the sound of our minister’s voice on a zoom bible study as a cue to curl up on the couch and fall asleep.
But there is one aspect of her behaviour we might wish to emulate in our Christian walk. And that is her focus. When you are throwing the ball for her, she is completely focused on the ball. You throw anything else she is not interested. Try to distract her. She is undeterred. Pretend to it throw. She’s not fooled. She is entirely focused on that ball.
In the storm, you’ve got to take your eyes off yourself, your weakness and inability. Take your eyes off the wind and the waves around you. But rather fix your eyes on Jesus.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12 v 1-3
We don’t see Jesus physically as the disciples did. Still, Pauls tells to the Corinthians to fix their eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen since what is seen (our struggles, our troubles, the wind and the waves) are temporary, but what is unseen (the treasure stored up for us in heaven through Jesus) is eternal (2 Corinthians 4 v 18).
So let your eyes look straight ahead of you. Keep your eyes on your master. If we submit to him in our storms, he promises not to abandon us but will lead us on a straight path through the storm. Like Peter, Jesus calls us to walk in faith and like Peter, he will keep us as we come.
But we live in a busy world that supplies us with no end of distractions. So often, our devotion to Christ isn’t undivided. Worries pile in, and we lose our focus. Like Peter, our focus on the greatest of our saviour often becomes eclipsed by the greatest of the storm around us. He takes his eyes off Jesus just for a moment and focuses instead on the wind and the waves. He starts to sink because he takes his eyes off Jesus.
But what does he do? Does he try to save himself or struggle on his own? No. He cries out to God with this prayer, “Lord save me!” (v30). It’s short and uncomplicated, but it’s a prayer we need to be praying.
The Psalms are full of these sorts of prayers. Psalm 69 starts, “Save me, O God, for waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into deep waters; the floods engulf me.
When you feel like this, don’t struggle on in your own strength in foolish pride. Cry out to God! We see here he is not slow to answer. Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. He pulls him up in grace and mercy. He doesn’t give up on his people; that’s his promise.
“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you” Isaiah 41 v 13
The Storm’s Chief End
Jesus takes the storm away. The storm calms the moment he steps onto the boat. Jesus is in complete control of it. The storms in the Christian life are not endless, for Psalm 30 says that “weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”
And as dawn breaks, what are the disciples doing? They are worshipping Jesus. They now have a clearer picture of who Jesus is now. Like Job, after his suffering, said, “My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you” (Job 42 v 5). This is what God wants to be the end result of our storms – that we know more of him, that we worship him, and our hearts are filled with praise for our saviour.
For Jesus is the one who stepped into the greatest storm of all, the storm of God’s wrath against our sin. If you trust him as your saviour, no matter what you face, he will be with you.
But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who created you, Jacob,
he who formed you, Israel:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
Isaiah 43 v 1-2
