Jeanette Renouf

My Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Today’s Gospel is from Mark 4:35-41.

Jesus, exhausted from a full day of healing and teaching, asks his sailor friends to take him to the other side of the lake. Almost as soon as they set sail, Jesus falls asleep.

A storm comes up on the lake and the crew is afraid the boat will sink. They wake Jesus to to warn him and he calms the storm and, we assume, goes back to sleep.

Life can send us unexpected storms, just as it did the people in the boats. We might also have to be awakened and told we are in danger.

I, too, have asked Jesus to calm my storms. Sometimes the storm subsides and sometimes I am given the courage to endure, to persevere. Either way Jesus has responded to my plea.

The storms of life assail all of us. Jesus, no longer in a human body, does not sleep. He is always ready to help us, to be with us in the storms we encounter.

We have only to call upon him, to trust that he is with us and loves us, and knows what is best for us. The answer is not always the one we ask for, but it is the one we need to experience.

So when storms come up on your sea of life and rock your boat don’t hesitate to call upon Jesus to help. He will be there and see you through the storm.

Love and Peace,

—Jeanette