Wide Awake

And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” (Matthew 8:23-27 ESV). There are those times in our lives when the circumstances are so senseless that it may appear that God is asleep. Our reading is one of those times for the disciples. Jesus instructed his disciples to get into the boat to travel to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. A storm blew in and began to threaten the boat. Jesus had fallen asleep in the stern of the boat. The disciples were incredulous at his lack of attention to the obvious peril they found themselves in. They were wondering if he was even remotely aware of their predicament! I have seen a boat very similar to the boat the disciples would have been in. There is a museum in Israel that houses what is known as the “Jesus Boat,” which is like the boat these fishermen would have had. This was not a sophisticated craft, but a very simple little boat. Jesus managed to go to sleep in the little area underneath the top deck, most likely exhausted after a hard day of ministry. Jesus could sleep because He was resting confidently in the will of His Father. And the disciples should have done that, too. He told them they would be fine. In Mark's version of this same story, Jesus told them, "Let us cross over to the other side" (cf. Mark 4:35). And that meant they would cross over to the other side. He didn't promise them an easy trip. But He did promise them a safe arrival. And although the shrieking of the storm did not wake Jesus, the cry of His people did. The moment the disciples cried out, He responded immediately and powerfully. He silenced the thunder and calmed the sea! It is a good lesson for us to learn. God is always wide awake. A mother and her little four-year-old daughter were preparing to retire for the night. The child was afraid of the dark, and the mother, alone with the child, felt fearful also. When the light was out, the child caught a glimpse of the moon outside the window. "Mother," she asked, "is the moon God's light?" "Yes," said the mother. "God's light is always shining." The next question was, "Will God blow out His light and go to sleep?" And the mother replied, "No, my child. God never goes to sleep." Then out of a simplicity of a child's faith she said that which gave reassurance to the fearful mother: "Well, so long as God is awake, I am not afraid." Don’t worry… He’s always wide awake!