Terri's Wellspring

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 that we perish?  And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? Mark 4:38-40

One of my favorite storytellers is Bailey White. She is a gifted Southern writer who speaks with a raspy distinctive voice. She told a story about living with her mother during a warm summer night in Georgia. Her mother often opted to sleep out of the porch during these hot nights to keep cool. This particular night while Bailey was sleeping she realized that a thunderstorm had arrived complete with high winds, lightening and rain. She jumped into action knowing that her mother had planned to sleep outside. When she reached the porch door she saw the storm’s fury with rain and wind. And then she saw her mother, who was lying motionless on the couch on the porch. She called her name as she feared that her mother was frozen in fear and unable to move in the midst of the high winds. As she approached her mother, she heard a familiar but perplexing sound, her mother’s snore. Her mother was not gripped with fear; instead, was sound asleep, complete with snoring, in the middle of the storm. She awakened her mother to let her know about the storm. At that point, the Mother reassured her daughter that it was just a storm that would pass.

It was a powerful reminder of the ability to be confident and peaceful even during the natural and figurative storms of our lives. No doubt her mother’s decades of living had nurtured her faith to realize that our lives have cycles of storms that both come and go. We can choose to be fearful or we can select a path of peace that is rooted in our firm belief that our Father is still in control and that he will never leave us nor forsake us. The familiar passage of scripture tells a similar story of the disciples crossing the lake to the other side when a storm arises that seems to threaten their lives. We have heard before about how the disciples awaken Jesus who was sound asleep in the bottom of the ship. He awakens and commands the waves to be still but also asks the Disciples about their faith. It is a compelling story about the ability to have peace, rest and faith during a storm. Whatever we are facing today, we can stand in faith that our God is in control, providing protection and grace to allow us to reach our destination safely.