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Why are you so afraid?

We can usually tell how close we are to someone by how easily we admit our fears to them. I don’t just tell anyone what scares me. I have to be close to someone to trust them with my insecurities, self-doubt, and fears. Jesus was undoubtedly close to His disciples, yet they still struggled with fear. There were times when even they chose fear over faith.  

Let's take a look at Mark 4:35-40. Jesus had been teaching a crowd from a boat on a lake. Evening came and He told His disciples to cross over with Him to the other side. Suddenly, a ferocious storm arose with violent winds and waves that crashed into the boat, and the boat was all but swamped. In the midst of the storm, Jesus had fallen asleep and continued to sleep while the storm was raging all around them. 

Have you ever felt that Jesus has fallen asleep during a storm in your life? Maybe you were hanging on for dear life while everything around you seemed to be falling to pieces. Maybe your marriage was hanging by a thread, you got fired from your job and were worried you wouldn’t find another one, or you received a medical diagnosis that had you scared for your life. Life brings many storms.

The disciples never saw this particular storm coming. All seemed calm and Jesus fell asleep, then suddenly, the boat they were in was slammed with waves and sinking fast. Jesus, however, remained in a peaceful sleep. The disciples shook Him awake, saying, “Teacher, don’t you even care that we are all about to die?” 

The disciples seemed to have forgotten who was with them on the boat. Jesus doesn’t cause storms, but there are times in our lives when He allows them. Even so, He’s always right there with us. 

The disciples panicked and shook Jesus awake in their terror. I believe that at times, Jesus allows the storms in our lives to reach a point where we have no other option but to involve Him. He wants us to urgently call out to Him—to completely trust and rely on Him and give Him an opportunity to show His glory in our lives. I believe Jesus slept through the storm to test their faith and see how they would respond. 

They immediately thought they were going to die. I can quickly go to worst-case scenario thinking, too. I can think things like, “I’m going to fail,” “They’ll reject me,” “I don’t measure up,” “God won’t answer this time,” and on and on. The disciples in this scenario proved to have little faith, but they did have big prayers. I love this, because there are times when my faith is small, but my prayers are big or even desperate. 

The Bible says that Jesus, fully awake, rebuked the storm. Immediately, the wind and water became perfectly calm. When they cried out to Him in their desperation, He responded. You see, we’re not in control. He is, and in one command, He can calm the raging sea. 

Jesus won’t let us sink. He’ll always provide when we call out to Him. It may not be the way we want, and there may be some things we have to walk through, but when we call on His name, we can know that He’s fully awake to our situation and that He can and will intervene on our behalf. He’s always with us and He hears our prayers.

After He rebuked the storm, Jesus asked the disciples two questions: “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” It’s like He was asking them, “Why don’t you trust me? What are you afraid will happen?” He was getting to the root of the issue: He wanted them to trust Him with their fears. He used this storm to strengthen their faith. 

Are you in a storm right now? What are you afraid will happen? What keeps you up at night? Tell Jesus. Strengthen your faith by bringing those fears to Him. He’s right there in the boat with you, waiting for you to wake Him up with your prayers so He can move on your behalf. He wants you to call out to Him, and only He can rescue you. He has the power to calm the storm. 

Even if your faith is small, pray big prayers. You can trust Him.