Prayer of the Day

Twelfth Sunday of the Year

In today’s Gospel Jesus asks his disciples to take him to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.  For Jesus it is the end of a long day preaching to the crowds gathered around the seashore.   They have heard many parables and now Jesus wants to leave them and go off with his disciples.   As they are crossing in the boat a great storm arises.  The Sea of Galilee is famous for its sudden and unexpected storms.  This massive storm, however, terrifies even the seasoned fishermen, yet Jesus is perfectly calm and sleeping through it all.  The disciples are indignant at his seeming lack of concern so they wake him up.  Jesus gets up and “rebukes” the wind and says to the sea, “Quiet now! Be calm!”  Immediately everything is calm.  Jesus then rebukes his disciples for their lack of faith, “Why are you afraid? How is it that you have no faith?”  In times of crisis we can experience doubts about the reality of God’s loving care for us.   But our faith tells us that even though Jesus seems to be asleep in our boat he is very much aware and ready to step in if necessary.  He likes us to be able to put all fear aside and trust in him to take care of us in all situations.