Uncontrollable Jesus
We can no more control Jesus than we can control a raging storm. But a common deceit runs along the lines that if we behave just right and pray just so and posture correctly, Jesus is almost duty bound to give us what we desire. That desire may be for good things like safety or health or success, and so he becomes our Divine Genie coming through on our behalf. This is quid pro quo faith, where we give to get, and can be found in many a believer's heart. There is no trust involved, just a paycheck.
But Jesus doesn't play that way. In his times he refused to be steered or manipulated and nothing has changed. Jesus is uncontrollable. An interesting account of Jesus happens early in the book of Mark when, after teaching on one side of the Sea of Galilee, he leaves the crowds and goes by boat, heading to the other side. High hills surround this lake, and when temperatures and pressures change, winds can whip the surface into a frenzy, and a huge storm threatened to swamp the small fishing boats. Jesus was asleep in the back of the boat while these seasoned fishermen were frantically trying to bail water with little hope of success. This must have been a monster storm! They come to him, shaking him awake and scream their fears over the howling winds,
"Teacher, don't you care that we are perishing?"
In panic they assail Jesus with accusations that he doesn't care about them and is asleep in their time of greatest need. That sounds so much like me, and maybe like you. When storms come my way and I am bailing water like a mad dog and doing all I know to do, I have screamed to Jesus a line similar to this one.
Do you see me?
Am I out of reach?
Have I done something to deserve this?
Don't you care that I'm close to my end?
The simple truth is that I want to control his response to the storm flooding my boat, and he will not be controlled. But that should not be confused with his doing nothing. He acts, just in ways that can seem dangerous or distant to us.
In this scene, when awakened and challenged, Jesus does something remarkable. He speaks to the hurricane. He doesn't pose like Charlton Heston as Moses with a puffed-out chest and upheld staff to bellow a command in a basso profundo voice. No drama, just a word
"Quiet down and be completely still."
This sounds much like a parent to an unruly child who is out of control. The winds ceased and more impressively, the text reads that the sea went from raging waves to dead calm. Jesus does not conjure or call on a higher power. He is the higher power. The account concludes with stunning insight. At the end of Mark 4, the disciples, who just moments before were afraid they would die in the sea, now are shaking in their boots at the realization of what they had just witnessed and who they were with.
He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him?"
Jesus does allow his people to go through storms that hold tremendous destructive power, but that in no way equates to his not caring or watching over every part of our lives. He holds infinitely more power than any storm we will encounter. The difference lies in his love for us. As we fearfully face our storm, we either trust or turn away. When I expect/demand that I be insulated from life's storms, I set myself up for crushing disappointment since life ... happens. However, when I understand the storms I encounter are part of the story of love and redemption he is writing in me, then I can be calm in the storm. "Why are you so afraid?" echoes in my heart.
Really, why am I afraid? Faith calls me to release my grip on life and trust in a savior who calms the hurricane and settles the waters, but too often my faith reaches only as far as I can see. He is the king and I am part of his kingdom, but not king. Throughout life, we learn to trust as we work out our salvation day after day in the midst of the waves and winds of life. We are wise to remember that one of Jesus' titles is Immanuel, God with us, waist deep with us, sleepless nights with us, walking hard miles with us, at the bedside with us, always with us.
So, today, friend, if your little boat is rocked by winds and crashed by waves and it seems like Jesus is asleep on a cushion in the stern, take heart. He knows the need and will never be surprised or overwhelmed by the storm. Tell him of all your worries then trust him in the midst of your fears. He laid down his life for you, how much more will he walk you through every day you live. Let's go!
Music? Sure.
...and a couple of funnies for the road
A mother asked her small son what he would like for his birthday.
"I'd like a little brother," a boy said.
"Oh my, that's such a big wish," said the mother. "Why do you want a little brother?"
"Well," said the boy, "there's only so much I can blame on the dog."
________
A lady sent in a long obituary. The paper called and told her the cost was so much per word.
"Oh, my" she said, "Just change that to 'George died.'"
The paper then told her that there was a five word minimum.
"Well," she said, "make that 'George died, Buick for sale.'"