ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL

Wake Up, Jesus! 

Don't You Care That We Are Drowning? 

A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat.  Jesus was asleep on a cushion.

Mark 4

Have you ever been so scared, so panic-stricken, so overwhelmed with terror that you thought you’d die? We even talk about being “scared to death.” Most of us have been protected from such feelings, except maybe for a few seconds on a mega-roller coaster. Sadly, there are people in this world who live year in and year out in sheer terror of losing their lives or the lives of their loved one’s through violence and poverty. Some, like the passengers on the plane that went down over Pennsylvania on 9/11 or the planes that plowed into the Twin Towers in New York, leave this world in such a heightened panic-stricken state. It must be a human being’s worst nightmare to clearly know that he or she is going to die in a few seconds without the means to stop it. I will never forget the video I forced myself to watch back in 2015. It was a video of twenty-one young men, Coptic Christians, forced to kneel on a beach in Libya moments before having all 21 of their heads cut off by terrorists standing behind them with their knives pulled and ready. I could see the terror in their faces as they as were no doubt thinking about their families and friends, their eyes closed, their heads bowed and their lips moving in prayer, realizing what was about to happen to them! Sheer terror is surely one of the most painful human emotions. A few sadistic people, both Christians and non-Christians, have been known to take delight in watching their victims suffer, suspended in panic and terror. Other people, even some professed non-believers, naturally turn to God at those moments. As the old saying goes, “There are no atheists in foxholes!”

It is such a situation that Mark describes in today’s gospel. Every detail of the story is important. It was during the dark of evening when they got into a small fishing boat to set sail across open water. A violent squall came out of nowhere and waves started breaking over the boat causing it to start sinking. Imagine what it is like being in an open boat, on a lake, in a storm, after dark. They must have been “scared to death.” I know I would have been because I have had the experience of watching one of my friends drown right in front of me when I was in high school. To this day, I can still see the sheer panic in his eyes as he went under for the final time and never came back up! I can still remember staring at the dark water where he had disappeared. The gospel story of today’s storm says that Jesus was stretched out on a cushion, appearing to be asleep, through all of it! When they woke him, he quieted the raging sea and calmed their panicked hearts.

I believe that this event actually happened, but the fact that it happened is not as important as why the early church told and re-told this story and even put it into its Scriptures. The early church, persecuted for their faith, saw themselves besieged by storms while the ascended Jesus seemed to them to be indifferent and absent in their time of need! They were being tortured and killed for their faith and they intensely felt the absence of Jesus as they suffered. To them, Jesus seemed to be sleeping through all of it. They knew, however, that when they turned to him in prayer and in faith, he was able to calm their fears and restore their peace of mind. In such situations, they would, no doubt, recall his words to them while he was still with them here on earth: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you.”

There are several stories in the gospels about being out on the water in a storm when Jesus came to the rescue. They are old stories, told and retold, to give subsequent generations strength and hope during times of trial, when Jesus seemed to be so far away and even disinterested. I used one of these stories on my 25th ordination anniversary to describe the courage I had received, especially during the rough times. I chose the story of Peter’s walk on water. Peter was able to walk on water, even in a storm, as long as he kept his eyes fixed on Jesus. When he looked away from Jesus and focused on how deep the water was and how high the waves were, he began to sink. It was only when he reached out to Jesus that he was helped from going under. Many times, over the last 51 years, I have felt that I was going under, but as long as I was able to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus, I have been able to manage my fear and maintain my inner peace.

Some of you here today are probably going through a rough time right now, feeling that you are sinking or drowning in the storm that is battering you: a terrible health diagnosis, an abusive relationship, a loveless marriage-gone-bad, a drug addicted child, an alcoholic spouse, sick elderly parents, the loss of a job or even bankruptcy. I am sure that some of you have had the feeling that God seems to be absent or asleep or even disinterested in your situation. Hopefully, today’s gospel holds a message for you – the message that Jesus never sleeps and, when called on, can calm your terrified and worried heart and, in time, make your storm subside!

The older I get, the more opportunities I have to look back on and the more experiences I have under my belt. I would say I have learned two things: (a) most of what I worried about never happened and (b) even if they did happen, some surprising blessings came out of many of those bad experiences. In fact, some of the best things in my life have come out of some of the stormiest times of my life. This has happened so often, that I am often able to turn toward Jesus earlier and earlier in the storm, knowing that he is there for me, even when he appears to be asleep. I have been reminded many times of the words of Jesus. “Fear is useless. What is needed is trust.”

We often talk about “faith” as if it is a noun, a “thing” we have one day and a “thing” we lose the next. “Faith” is really a verb. It is something we “do.” It is something we do when all seems lost. In situations like that the question is this. Can you trust God in a radical way - not just when everything is going well, but when everything seems to be going wrong, when you feel like you are in a sinking boat, out on a lake, after dark and in a storm?

The message from Jesus to us today is this – “Do not let your hearts be troubled! Put your faith and trust in me!” I still remember the words of a 98 year old friend, a parishioner here, when I visited her right before she died. I asked her if she was scared. She said quite confidently, “No, I’m not scared of dying, Father. God has always taken care of me. I trust that, when the time comes, he will be there for me again. I am not scared or worried!” After 98 years, it doesn't get any better than that! 

GOD ON THE MOUNTAIN

IS STILL GOD IN THE VALLEY

Life is easy, when you're up on the mountain
And you've got peace of mind, like you've never known
But things change, when you're down in the valley
Don't lose faith, for your never alone

For the God on the mountain, is still God in the valley
When things go wrong, he'll make them right
And the God of the good times, is still God in the bad times
The God of the day, is still God in the night
We talk of faith way up on the mountain
But talk comes easy, when life's at its best
Now its down in the valleys, trials and temptations
That's where your faith is really put to the test

For the God on the mountain, is still God in the valley,
When things go wrong, he'll make them right
And the God of the good times, is still God in the bad times
The God of the day, is still God in the night
The God of the day, is still God in the night