Jesus Is In the Boat

 

“It is impossible for that man to despair who remembers that his Helper is omnipotent.” ~Jeremy Taylor

 Like many of you, I sometimes suffer an occasional trial or misfortune.  Just recently, I found myself having what I like to call a “Pity Party "over things that extended far beyond my span of control.  I had been wronged and forcibly made to endure the burdens of a person I had become embittered with.  Carrying their extra load would leave me with a heavy financial encumbrance that with my natural eye, seemed impossible to overcome. I wallowed in the gullies of self pity and discontent crying out to anyone who would listen.  Everything that I had become accustomed to, the lifestyle that I lived, the clothes I liked to wear, the house I lived in, the places I frequently traveled were all at risk of being taken away from me.  I pleaded my case to God and reminded Him (as if He could actually forget) about the works I had done for the Kingdom and cried out to Him about the unfairness and injustice of the situation. 

As I bellowed and groaned over my affliction, God quickened my spirit and reminded me of  a narrative from the Bible.   As a child, I can remember reading the story of Christ speaking to the storm and being both awed by his power and yet mystified by the doubt and unbelief of the disciples that set out into the waters with him.  An account of these events can be found in the book of Mark. 

³⁵ “That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” ³⁶Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. ³⁷ A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. ³⁸ Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

 ³⁹ He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

 ⁴⁰ He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

 ⁴¹ They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” ~Mark 4:35-41 NIV

“If I had Christ with me, I would never be afraid!”  I had told myself.  “Hadn’t the Disciples witnessed the miracles he performed?  Weren’t they there to hear his teachings?  Why should they be afraid of anything?”  …and yet they were, even though the entire time their savior had not left them.   Jesus was in the boat. 

Logically speaking, if the Son of God said he wanted his party to cross the sea of Galilee, surely they would have been able to do so, stormy weather or not.   But the disciples, crippled with fear, cried out and even accused Jesus of not caring about their horrible situation.  “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” 

This pitiful petition from Christ's Holy Elect sounded incredibly similar to my own.  I found myself eating the very same words I used to mock the disciples with.   At that very moment I heard God speak to my spirit    “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

It was a legitimate question.  God had sustained me through many dark days and trials.  But like the children of Israel, I had forgotten the works of my Heavenly Father.  I was reminded of a recent sermon I heard where the Pastor mentioned that the Israelites were freed from bondage in Egypt, but because of their doubt and unbelief were held captive by their own doing in the wilderness for forty years.  God parted the Red Sea, destroyed Pharaoh’s army, brought water out of rocks, and sent manna from Heaven, and yet they continued to question God.  I then again heard the Lord say,   “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

So what is faith?  Faith is defined as  a strong or unshakeable belief in something, especially without proof or evidence.  Their is an amazing excerpt on faith in the Bible Dictionary that I would like to share with you. 

 Faith is in general the persuasion of the mind that a certain statement is true (Phil. 1:27; 2 Thess. 2:13). Its primary idea is trust. A thing is true, and therefore worthy of trust. It admits of many degrees up to full assurance of faith, in accordance with the evidence on which it rests. Faith is the result of teaching (Rom. 10:14-17). Knowledge is an essential element in all faith, and is sometimes spoken of as an equivalent to faith (John 10:38; 1 John 2:3). Yet the two are distinguished in this respect, that faith includes in it assent, which is an act of the will in addition to the act of the understanding. Assent to the truth is of the essence of faith, and the ultimate ground on which our assent to any revealed truth rests is the veracity of God.

“His Eye is on the sparrow and I know he watches me.” ~Civilla D. Martin

Have you ever heard the hymn “His Eye Is On the Sparrow”?  It was written by lyricist Civilla D. Martin in 1905 and is an excellent representation of what a Christian’s faith is supposed to be.  

Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come, Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav’n and home, When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He: His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me. Refrain: I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free, For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me. “Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear, And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears; Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me. Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise, When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies, I draw the closer to Him, from care He sets me free; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

  Martin was inspired to write the song by the words of Jesus in the Book of Mathew. 

29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” ~Matthew 10:29-31 NIV

Some texts state that Martin had a second source of inspiration for her classic Gospel hymn.

“Early in the spring of 1905, my husband and I were sojourning in Elmira, New York. We contracted a deep friendship for a couple by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Doolittle—true saints of God. Mrs. Doolittle had been bedridden for nigh twenty years. Her husband was an incurable cripple who had to propel himself to and from his business in a wheel chair. Despite their afflictions, they lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them. One day while we were visiting with the Doolittle’s, my husband commented on their bright hopefulness and asked them for the secret of it. Mrs. Doolittle’s reply was simple: “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith gripped the hearts and fired the imagination of Dr. Martin and me. The hymn “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” was the outcome of that experience.”

—Civilla Martin

“A ship in a harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”~ William Shedd

Reading Civilla Martin’s account of the origins of her song brings to mind another passage of scripture from the Bible that speaks about fear and worry. 

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?²⁶ 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? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?    ²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” ~Matthew 6:28-34 NIV

There are days where you will be lacking courage because of the high waves of uncertainty that appear to be swamping your boat.  Financial rain and wind may be beating against you as you struggle to stay afloat in the turbulent seas of debt.  You may only see loneliness  and pain on the horizon in front of you.  Storm clouds of rejection may be circling overhead.  You may even think your inevitable ruin is near.  But fear not, My Friends.  Let the winds blow, let the rains fall.  You are a child of God and have been called to go to the other side with Him.  Yes, the storms may be rough.  Yes, you may be tested.  But have faith, beloved.  Jesus is in the boat and that’s all that really matters.  Be Blessed, My Friends.  Be an Overcomer!

~Bro. Jason Z. Hunt

Memory Verse:  “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” ~Matthew 10:29-31 NIV

Memory Word:“Faith”: a strong or unshakable belief in something, especially without proof or evidence.

Inspiring Music:  “His Eye is on the Sparrow” by Shirley Caesar