P.O. Box 53055    
Los Angeles, CA 90053   

LOST AT SEA

The Gulf of Manfredonia is not the best-known tourist destination in the world. In fact, you’d need to be quite a geographer to know where to look for it on a world map. It’s in the Adriatic Sea, bathing the east coast of the Italian peninsula. And in the gulf, a small fishing village sits serenely overlooking the sparkling water.

In 2001, a father and son left the village and sailed out to fish. Steve Newman of the Los Angeles Times didn’t report their names, just the remarkable events that overtook them. In search of fish, they ventured beyond the protection of the peninsula into the Adriatic. And while engaged in their ancient profession, a storm blew up. Storms are such a part of life at sea that the father took little notice of it, and steadying himself against the rolling and pitching of his boat in the mounting waves, kept right on working. But then a freakish wave washed his 14-year-old son overboard. This wouldn’t have been quite so serious but for these realities. Unbelievably, the boy couldn’t swim, and he wasn’t wearing a life jacket!

By the time the father realized his son had disappeared, he had no idea where to look for him. In the Gulf of Manfredonia over the previous few years, fisherman had often been accompanied by a playful dolphin they named Fillipo. The dolphin swam beside the boats coming in and out of harbor. Fillipo became the official mascot of these fisher folk.

As the 14-year-old sank beneath the water, he felt something smooth and hard under his back, a lift of sorts, and moments later, gasping for air, he broke the surface. Then he saw, half beneath and half beside him, Fillipo! The lad said later, “When I realized it was Fillipo, I just hung onto him.” The dolphin gently pushed him through the waves, always keeping the lad’s head out of the water, until a short ride brought them alongside the boat. A disbelieving father saw them in an instant, extended a fishing pole, and lifted his boy back on board—unharmed! Not every storm at sea ends in disaster.

And that brings us back to Mark 4, and the rest of the story of the storm on Galilee we were recalling yesterday.

At the moment of ultimate crisis and desperation, when the disciples thought they were about to die in a storm on Galilee, they shook Jesus awake, He stood up, and said to the storm, “Be quiet, be still.”

He didn’t shout, He just spoke. The Greek word that Mark used here, is the verb form of the Greek word logos, which means “word.” Do you remember the opening words of John’s Gospel, “In the beginning was the Word,” that’s logos. And here Jesus, Who is called “the Word,” speaks, a word. He says, “peace,” or “quiet.” And He adds, “Be still.”

A more literal translation is, “be muzzled.” Jesus says, “I won’t allow you to bark or bite any longer. You’re muzzled!” And at that instant, not gradually, not after a period of time, not over the next half hour, but instantly, the wind stopped, the water turned from white capped waves to mill-pond calm . . . instantly!

And in that sudden calm, with exhausted men half floating in the flooding water, inside an almost submerged boat, Jesus asks this astounding question, “Why were you afraid?” Isn’t that an amazing question? I hear a voice rising up from a throat also coughing up water exclaiming in disbelief, “You want to know why we’re afraid!”

But it seems to me, friend, that’s the question we most need to remember from this story today. If we can recapture that question any time we feel ourselves drowning in difficulties, it will sustain us. “Why be afraid if Jesus is with me?” That question puts life back into perspective doesn’t it?
Contemplating the story of the men that thought they were lost at sea, several lessons come to mind. They’ve helped me, and I pray they’ll help you too.

The story begins with a Great Tiredness. I’m reading verse 38.

Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion (Mark 4:38).

Our very human Jesus had been taking care of His Father’s business until He felt himself dropping with tiredness. He had to get away. He had to get some sleep. At that moment sleep was more important than food, or friends, or family.

Which speaks to me about the need for balance in my lifestyle. Only I can make the decision to stop and say, “I’ve got to rest. I’ve got to look after myself, and my family and friends. Right now I must stop.” Great tiredness is inevitable for those that work hard. But great tiredness must be followed by great rest. That’s why God gave us some eight hours of darkness every 24 hours.

And God gives one day in seven for rest, and worship, fellowship. As a child I learned the chorus that says, “Six days we have to work and play, the seventh is for Jesus.” It’s true. And the weekly Sabbath rejuvenates and revives us, it builds up the body, the mind, and the spirit so we can start a new week with energy and enthusiasm. Nightly sleep and Sabbath rest are part of God’s prescription for the tired and the weary. We skip them at our peril!

And after Great Tiredness as the story begins, is a Great Storm. I read in verse 37:

A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped (Mark 4:37).

In our lives, the more we neglect our tiredness and avoid the necessary rest, the greater will be the storm that follows. And on the physical side, it may well be a storm of ill health. On the spiritual side, the more we neglect our daily contacts with Him (those spontaneous moments of prayer, sprinkled like incense throughout the day) the greater will be the storm. Great tiredness keeps us disconnected, and that leads to great storms of doubt and poor health.

Third in the story is a Great Command: I read here in verse 39, as the King James Version puts it (in those memorable words):
Peace, be still. (Mark 4:39).
Not a shout, like a Sergeant Major on parade with new recruits, just a simple, spoken directive.

Yesterday, I quoted the words of a fine hymn, and this part of the story reminds me of another hymn. You know, I grew up in a very musical family, and the Melashenko Family Singers continue to present some of these grand hymns around the country. But did you ever sing these words by Mary Ann Baker? They rise in pitch and volume to match a gathering storm, and its instantaneous collapse.
Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea,
Or demons or men or whatever it be,
No water can swallow the ship where lies,
The Master of ocean, and earth, and skies!
They all shall simply obey His will,
“Peace, Peace, be still!”

The Bible speaks of the “still, small” or whispering voice of God. That’s the way we all should constantly hear Him in our daily lives. Not some occasional thunder clap. But constant whispers to our hearts, minds, and souls. And that means we have to listen. We have to “be still.” We have to be quiet. We have to meditate. Only then do will we hear His voice.

Fourth in the story, is a Great Calm. I read further in verse 39, in the Amplified version:
Hush now! Be . . . (muzzled)! And the wind ceased . . . and there was [immediately] . . . (a perfect peacefulness) (Mark 4:39).
That must be the most desired, but the most commonly missing element in modern life: peace. But as soon as we hear God speak peace into our minds, we experience a great calm.

Everybody wants this inner calm, but we usually want it in some easy way. We want to follow a prescription, a mantra, a routine. But the great calm we all want and need is a trusting relationship that weathers time and storm, a friendship cemented by the experience of frequent dialogue and meditation. And that takes great effort, frequency, and discipline.

And fifth in the story is a Great Question. Jesus asks:

Why are you afraid (Mark 4:40)?

Every problem, every adverse circumstance, every assault from Satan brings pain, but Jesus says, “I’m with you in the pain. I’ll support you through the pain, and I give you My promise, that at the end of this age all pain will go. But in the meanwhile, I’ll remain with you, ’till together we walk into eternity.” His question forces us to face the reality of His continuous presence.

And story ends with a statement of Great Awe. The disciples exclaim:

What kind of man is this that even the winds and sea obey him (Mark 4:40)!

What kind of a man? Another great question! Fully human so He fully understands you. Fully divine, so your deepest needs will be met. Jesus stayed with His disciples through the storm until they experienced a perfect calm on the other side. And that can be our daily experience also.