Psalm 89:9 (NRSVue) - You rule the raging of the sea; when
its waves rise, you still them.
I do not live near the sea.
But this verse reminded me of a painting I saw as a child.
It was a seascape that depicted a storm.
The dark and ominous clouds made a perfect contrast to the lightning.
Huge waves formed by the turbulent wends were depicted in the background.
As they made their way to shore, they grew.
In the foreground, they crashed mightily upon the rocky shore.
This painting frightened me as a child.
Just thinking about it still makes me feel uneasy.
Just one gallon of water weighs more than 8 pounds (almost 4 kg).
As such, a large wave wields considerable power,
In Matthew 8, Jesus and His disciples travel by boat.
Jesus falls asleep.
A storm arises and the waves send water into the boat.
The disciples grow afraid.
In desperation, they wake Jesus!
Matthew 8:26 (NRSVue) - And [Jesus] said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a dead calm.
These are excellent reminders for us.
Life often becomes turbulent.
Adverse circumstances in life arise and multiply.
We might even feel like they are going to overwhelm us.
We can almost hear Christ say to us: “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?”
Christ has the power to conquer any storm, even those unrelated to the weather.
Christ was in the boat with His disciples when the storm came upon them.
He is also with us when adverse circumstances assail us.
He has the power to calm these storms as well.
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com on Friday, January
16, 2026.
I will be back here on Friday, January 23, 2026
