Week 43 – October 20-26, 2024: Do You Still Have No Faith?

This week’s daily readings:

October 20-26, 2024

This week’s devotional:

Do You Still Have No Faith?

by Rev. Lucy Albert

Scripture:

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.

He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

— Mark 4:37-40 (NIV) 

Reflection:

A few years ago I endured a relational attack from another Christian. Blindsided and reeling, I reached out to a trusted friend trained in healing prayer for help. One of the steps of this process is to envision the scene where the wounding occurred and invite Jesus to appear, paying close attention to where he shows up and what he does while he’s present. Sometimes I wonder how much my own imagination is taking the reins as opposed to Jesus actually appearing in my mind! 

In this case, I had no doubt because of the mismatch between the gravity of the situation and what Jesus did. There he was: looking through a glass paneled door into the room where I sat with the person laying into me, and Jesus was laughing! Obviously, if anyone else had been looking onto this scene and laughing, we should question their mental health. I felt no offense but only curiosity about what I saw unfolding. There were no edges in his laughter, no sense of coming retribution for the injustice I suffered, nor did I think he was minimizing the pain I endured. Rather, I felt a deep sense that he was looking into the future and rejoicing at the healing and redemption he knew he would bring. 

Was he looking all the way to the resurrection at the end of the age? Or would I reconcile with this person as we journey on earth? Might this redemption take a form I couldn’t imagine?

I still don’t know the answer, but I know that Jesus does. I also know that whatever the answer is will bring the most glory to himself, because that is his primary aim. And I’m exceedingly grateful for this image he gave me in order to remind me that, as awful as this incident was, he remains trustworthy! When the disciples woke him that day as the waves threatened to overtake their boat, the end of the conversation was this: “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 

Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Jesus can take it when we cry out to him in fear because we cannot be assured by what we see. When we do cry out, his response might be to calm the storm in our circumstances, or it might be to calm the storm in our heart. But he’ll always end by asking about the condition of our faith.

Prayer:

O Lord, how many storms will test my faith in this life? Whether they are literal wind-driven precipitation events or terrible clashes with other people, the fury and the fear are real. Thankfully, I have my heavenly Father to watch over me, Jesus to calm the storm, and the Holy Spirit to comfort me. If only I could remember all that when the storm is raging! Over and over I ask for this assurance: that I never forget that you really do care for me and that there is no one more able to save me in times of deep distress. Build my confidence and hope knowing that you love me and want what’s best for me. How could I ever doubt? Amen