They didn't expect Jesus to come to them this way.
Neither do we. We expect him to come in the form of peaceful hymns or Easter Sundays or quiet retreats. We expect to find Jesus in morning devotionals, church suppers, and meditations. We never expect to see him in a bear market, pink slip, lawsuit, foreclosure, or war. We never expect to see him in a storm. But it is in storms that he does his finest work, for it is in storms that he has our keenest attention.
Jesus replied to the disciples' fear with an invitation worthy of inscription on every church cornerstone and residential archway. "Don't be afraid, he said Take courage. I am here."
We cannot go where God is not. Look over your shoulder, that's God following you. Look into the storm, that's christ coming towards you.
His call to courage is not a call to naivete or ignorance. We aren't to be oblivious to the overwhelming challenges that life brings. We're to counterbalance them with long looks at God's accomplishments. " We must pay close attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it" (Heb 2:1). Do whatever it takes to keep your gaze on Jesus.
C.S. Lewis once wrote:
Faith... is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted, in spite of the changing moods. For moods will
change, whatever view your reason takes. I know that by experience.
God is calling. It is time to follow. We cannot be afraid. We have to be fearless and willing. God is working. He is there. In the triumphs he is there. In the struggles he is there. How do you expect Jesus to come? Well look again, because he is beyond your expectations, he can do more than we can imagine. We cannot settle for less than Gods best. Look again. Look beyond. Look to Jesus.
