“Master, do you not care that we are perishing?” As the storm rages around them, the disciples rush to wake the sleeping Jesus; this is generally seen to be the right move. When the storms of life hit, the disciple ought to rush to the master. We beg Christ with our prayers to intervene and make things right, to command the metaphorical storms in our life: “be still!” The disciples are doing a good thing by calling upon Christ to save them, for all who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved!

But Jesus shows us the better thing.

Jesus is so secure in his relationship with the heavenly Father that no earthly storm can disturb Him. He remains tranquil and peaceful because He trusts so securely in His father’s love. This is the better thing, and it is this kind of relationship with the Father that Christ is inviting us into: a life of both peace and rest!

I want to invite you to look at this piece and consider which of the figures best matches you: 1) the ceaseless striver who will make things right by his own efforts (far left); 2) the resigned stoic who surrenders to the storm (far right); 3) the one who offers pious but tepid prayers amid the crisis (see praying hands); 4) the one who shamelessly clings in desperation to the master; 5) or the one enshrined in heavenly light and commands stillness even as the visualized storm reaches the height of its freneticism. I believe each character marks a key stage in our spiritual lives, but the hope is that we will progress through each stage to attain the final one: the peace that surpassing all understanding.

Perhaps some of you think it is impossible to become like the sleeping man in the middle, but to that, I refer you to the words of Christ himself: “What is impossible for man is possible with God.”