Who’s in Your Boat?

Fear is in the boat. Why? Because the boat is in the storm. Matthew describes the scene like this: “Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping.” (Matthew 8:24).

The Greek phrase for this furious storm is “megas seismos.” We associate seismic activity with earthquakes. Here, the Greek uses the word for a storm—a mega storm.

This storm must have been something to rattle these seasoned mariners. Fear was in the boat.

Jesus was there, too. Sound asleep.

The disciples rouse him in a panic. He gets up and orders the winds and waves to calm down. The scripture says: “And everything was calm.”

Amazing. The men in the boat ask: “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him.”

Storms come in life. Sometimes mega storms. The big question is: Who’s in your boat? If Jesus is there with you, you have nothing to fear. The wind and the waves obey him.

Painting: Henry Ossawa Tanner, “Fishermen at Sea”, ca. 1913.