BULLETIN ARTICLE
5 April 2020
BE STILL
Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10a
What do we do when we get hit by a terrifying diagnosis? Or what do we do when we see the number of COVID-19 infections around the world and the number of people succumbing to the illness suddenly spike? On the financial front, one sees the markets tumbling down and with it goes one’s lifelong savings. The natural human reaction is fear and anxiety.
One day, the disciples were with Jesus by the Sea of Galilee and were crossing by boat to the other side. A number of disciples were experienced fishermen and would have encountered situations of storm before. But on this particular occasion, the storm came up suddenly. Different translations rendered it as a “great storm”, “furious storm”, or “violent storm”. It must have been unprecedented. The disciples sensed the danger they were in and were frightened. They feared that the boat would sink causing them all to drown. But Jesus’ reply to the disciples’ desperate cry was “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26a) Why did Jesus reprimand the disciples for being so terrified?
It is no sin to make plans to overcome the difficulties one faces. When one has a medical condition, it is no sin to consult a doctor. But what Jesus is saying here is that we are not to worry about problems as if there is no God and his grace to take care of it. Jesus had earlier taught the disciples that the heavenly Father’s children are valuable to him and he takes care of them. “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? … For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” (Matthew 6:26, 32) Paul proclaimed to the Corinthians in the face of fear and weakness to trust in God’s power. “That your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:5)
We need to learn and re-learn that with Christ in the vessel, we can smile at the storm!
Be still, my soul, thy God doth undertake
To guide the future as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence, let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: The waves and wind still know,
His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.
In You I rest, in You I found my hope;
In You I trust, You never let me go.
I place my life within Your hands alone,
Be still, my soul.
