Good News For The Week

JESUS CALMS THE STORM

Mark 4:35-41.

This is a fairly familiar passage to many people, and so it is tempting to rush through it thinking we know it. Try not to do that, but read it through slowly and prayerfully. Ask God to reveal something of Himself through the passage. Having read it, pause for a while, and then read it slowly through again.

What do you notice? Does a particular phrase or image stand out to you? If it does, mull that phrase over in your mind: say it out loud. Mull it over some more. Is there anything surprising in the passage? What might God be saying to you? Why not ask Him?

When evening came, Jesus said to his disciples,

“Let us go over to the other side.”

Leaving the crowd behind, they went with him in the boat. There were also other boats with him.

A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat,

so that it was nearly swamped. 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?”

He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves,

“Quiet! Be still!”

Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

Jesus 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 wind and the waves obey him!”

Lake Galilee is a large freshwater lake in Israel. It is also known as Lake Tiberias, Genezareth Lake or Kinneret. Because of its size, it is also often called a ‘sea’. It is approximately 33 miles in circumference, about 13 miles long, and 8 miles wide, and its maximum depth is approximately 43 metres (141 ft). The lake’s main source is the Jordan River, which flows through it from north to south.  

During his three-year ministry, Jesus spent a lot of time in the communities around the huge lake.  Wherever he went, he was followed by large crowds, because news soon got round that a great teacher and healer was in the area. To get away from the throng, Jesus and his disciples were crossing Lake Galilee when a storm blew up, and the boat was in danger of sinking. Remember, a good number of Jesus’s disciples were hardened fishermen well used to storms on the lake, and so if they were panicking, then there was something to panic about! But the good news was that they had Jesus in the boat with them.

When we are faced with storms in our life, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed. Problems can paralyze us, like rabbits in headlights. Even small problems can grow as we worry. Molehill problems can look like mountains. The problems become our focus, preventing us from thinking about anything else and we can even think that we are on our own. We forget that we do not face these storms alone – we always have Jesus in our boat with us. Jesus never leaves us alone; he is always with us and he never stops caring about us.

It’s natural to be anxious, especially when we live on our own with no one to talk to, but let’s not forget that Jesus is always with us, and we need never face problems alone.

Philippians 3:7-14

John 12:1-8

IN YOUR PRAYERS THIS WEEK

• All those suffering the earthquake in Myanmar and Thailand
• God's peace and justice in all war-torn places of the world, but especially in Ukraine, Sudan and DRC
• The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas; that it will last
• The bereaved
• The sick, in mind, body or spirit, especially Stewart Stacey 
• The students and staff of our parish schools as they finish for the Easter break
• The staff at the surgery
• All involved in the interview process for our new vicar

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