The Wind Ran Out of Breath

Mark 4:35-41 (The Message)

Late that day [Jesus] said to [the disciples], “Let’s go across to the other side.” They took him in the boat as he was. Other boats came along. A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it. And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, “Teacher, is it nothing to you that we’re going down?”

Awake now, he told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, “Quiet! Settle down!” The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass. Jesus reprimanded the disciples: “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith at all?”

They were in absolute awe, staggered. “Who is this, anyway?” they asked. “Wind and sea at his beck and call!”

From my journal, December 7, 2000

I'm trying hard to imagine what that was like: fearing for your life because of a big storm and the next minute, at the command of your friend, the storm stops and you're safe.

Befuddlement.

Astonishment bordering on disbelief.

You'd try to be happy about it, but it was all just so  -  so  -  so STRANGE that all you can do is drop your jaw and gape.

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Truth is...we've done a pretty good job over the years of making Jesus less and less astonishing (see a previous post about that thought HERE). To counteract that, try reading the Gospels as if you were one of the participants.