God Cares (2)

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already 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? And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”- Mark 4:37-41

In the book of Mark 4:35-41, when Jesus wanted to minister the word of God, there were many ships available, but Jesus entered the biggest ship. In this scripture, Jesus spoke only eight words and it was settled. But the disciples interpreted the words of Jesus differently, depending on their levels of faith. To some, Jesus meant "Let us pass over unto the other side to do ministry and succeed" while some heard "Let us pass over unto the other side to die".

Beloved, whatever you perceive as God's intention for your life is a product of your choice, which is based on what you see or hear. That is why you must be careful of what you hear. The fact that you are experiencing some problems and difficulties does not mean that God does not care. Never doubt God's love for you even though things may seem to be working contrary to what God has said concerning you. Even at a time like this in this nation, God has not lost His control. God will never lose His control in your life. It is my prayer that you will hold unto the word of God.

The words, "let us go on to the other side" were the words in the mind of God; that was why Jesus could sleep in the presence of the storm. Jesus was able to sleep in the midst of storm because He had already echoed what the Holy Spirit said. The disciples were experienced fishermen who knew how to fish; they did all they could to stop the storm, but their best did not yield any positive result. On the long run, they had to call on Jesus and woke Him up. When you do not know what to do, you must know where to go. Verse 38 says- …And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not we perish? “What they meant is “we doubt whether you are in love”. Do you think this accusation is justifiable? Can you see how they responded to pressures? You can see the level of their faith by what they said. You can see the impulse of their unbelief in the midst of troubles.

Here, they did not say “You do not care that you are perishing”. They knew He could not perish even though He was sleeping, but they were not sure of their own safety. When Jesus spoke to them, He said 'Let us go…”, He did not say “Let me go…”. In other words, Jesus referred to the disciples as a team under the protection and safety of God. The words of Jesus were enough to take care of all of them, yet they never thought they were included in the divine plan. They must have believed the protection and safety of God could only work for Jesus and not for them. Beloved, whatever works for Jesus can also work for you.

Do you think God did not know that there would be a storm? I believe He knew it all. How many times have we also behaved as if God does not know what we are going through? The God that made Heaven and earth knows the thoughts of man, even before he speaks. God, who knows in eternity what will happen at the end of the world, will He not know what we are going through?

In this story, the disciples questioned Christ's integrity over their situation. It is my prayer that you will not fail God, regardless of the situation you face in life. It is funny when you listen to what some call prayer. You hear things like, "Why me"? "God, where is your face"? That is not prayer; it is murmuring and blackmail. God cares, He is a loving God. Never question the integrity of God's word. Jesus rebuked the disciples because they did not exercise their faith. This does not mean they had no faith, so what is faith?