Rowing in a Storm

“After the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, ‘Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.’ Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified. But he said to them, ‘It is I; don’t be afraid.’ Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.” 
John 6:14-21 NIV 1985 

The hopes and dreams of a fresh start, new calling, new path, that come with a new year can be exciting, until it is not! Have you ever had times in your life when you know you are doing exactly what God called you to do, yet it felt like an uphill battle, against the wind, every step of the way? This passage of scripture can help us in those times to determine why we might be facing those winds and what to do when we are in the storm.  
 
The setting of this passage is that Jesus is on a hillside in Bethsaida. He had just fed the 5,000 with five small barley loaves and two fish. In Mark chapter 4 we see that Jesus told the disciples to get in the boat and head on to Capernaum and He would catch up with them later. Jesus knew that He needed to be alone with the Father after a very full day of ministry with thousands of people who all of the sudden wanted to take Him by force to be their King.   
 
Let’s first look at Jesus knowing the hearts of the people in attendance. He knew that people were following Him just to be fed, to see miracles, and in this case, to forcibly make Him their King. In verse 15 we see that Jesus “withdrew again.” This wasn’t the first time Jesus pulled away in order to draw near. Jesus knew that in order to stay focused on why He was there, focused on doing the Father’s will, He had to get away to be alone with the Father. Have you ever felt so sidetracked that you actually pulled away from everything pulling on you in order to be alone with your Heavenly Father?   

Maybe we should be doing more of that; pulling away to draw near.   

Jesus did not rush His time alone with the Father. Crowds were pressing in on Him wanting Him to do things that were not in His Father’s will. So, when He was finally alone, He did not let the fact that the disciples were waiting to leave, or that they had already left, hurry Him in prayer. He took His time, as much time as He needed to renew for the next day of ministry.   
 
Secondly, when we look at this story in Mark 6:45-52, it says that Jesus made his disciples go ahead of him by boat to Bethsaida. Jesus is the one that told them to go. He knew there was a storm coming. He knew that they were going to be rowing into a steady headwind for hours. And yet, He still told them to go.   

Just because He says, “Go,” doesn’t mean it is going to be easy. 

Thirdly, in Mark, we see that the disciples had not understood about the loaves and the fish. It actually says that their hearts were hardened, or some translations say their hearts had become callous — dull. They had lost the power of understanding. They were oblivious and indifferent to His amazing works. They were not grasping His authority over all things. 
 
Now, let’s get to the disciples in the boat. Clearly in Mark 6:45, Jesus told the disciples to get in the boat and go. The words came out of Jesus’ mouth. They weren’t guessing about it. They couldn’t have been confused or misunderstood what He said. Jesus said, “Go,” and they went. They were physically obeying — they got in the boat and left.  
 
Yet their hearts were not right. They were filled with disbelief. This leads to our last point.  

It is one thing to physically obey God. It is another thing to surrender your heart and mind as well.

Once the disciples were in the boat, doing what Jesus told them to do, it was not an easy task. They spent a lot of time rowing into a very heavy, strong wind. By the time Jesus gets to them, they have only gotten halfway across the lake. And then they see what they think is a ghost and are terrified. 
 
Once Jesus sees that they are terrified, He immediately speaks to them. He didn’t wait to see what else they would do. He didn’t make them sit in their fear. He immediately spoke to them, “Take courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.” The Amplified Bible Classic Edition translates this verse as, “Take heart! I AM! Stop being alarmed.”  
 
I AM.  What a reminder of when Moses asked God, “Who should I tell the Israelites is sending me?” And God answered, “I AM has sent me to you.” God Almighty. The Creator of the universe. The one who can calm a storm with His hand.   
 
The disciples didn’t recognize Jesus coming to them because they couldn’t understand, couldn’t wrap their heads around what just happened. The disciples' disbelief clouded their vision. They couldn’t believe that Jesus was doing these things and therefore couldn’t see Him, truly see Him, for who He is.  
 
When we have our heart and mind aligned with Christ, we will see Him more clearly, recognize Him, and be ready to partner with Him. 

Faith is a mindset that expects God to act.   

Spend some time in prayer talking to God. Pull away to draw near. Talk with Him about the “steady headwind” you are rowing against. Prayerfully consider if you are only obeying with action but not surrendering with your heart. Confess any disbelief that He can move, heal, provide, defend, forgive, or restore in “your headwind.” Be reminded that Jesus is Lord over all things, can handle any situation on our behalf, and then invite Him into the boat.  
 
We might just get to our destination a little bit faster that way! 

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 
Matthew 6:33 NIV