Just recently, while I was staying in the Lake District, I got caught in an unexpected storm. (See the photo above!)
All was well when I set out – but a short while later, as I was ascending quite a steep climb, I felt the temperature dropping. I looked up to see the sun being blocked by some big grey clouds, which were scudding across the sky, and it suddenly started to rain. A flash of lightning followed, then a pause, before an ominous crack of thunder – and then the storm began in earnest.
Thankfully, I had waterproofs stashed away in my backpack. My hosts had warned me that a storm might be brewing, so I had heeded their advice and was prepared.
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I have written previously about how storms are an inevitable part of life, metaphorical as well as literal. (See here.)
Storms that seem to rage over our world, our nations, our neighbourhoods. Storms that frequently feel enormous, unwieldy and out of control.
But also storms that seem to swirl directly over us. Unexpected job losses. Health crises. Relationship breakdowns. Prodigal children.
Sometimes, a storm will catch us off guard. Other times, we will be alerted in advance.
Yet, even with prior warning, we have to decide: Will we accept what we are being advised, and prepare accordingly?
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The invitation
In the Bible, there’s a well-known story about a storm. (You can read it in Luke 8:22-24.)
If you’re familiar with the story, it’s likely you’ll have always focused on what happens once Jesus and his disciples are in the boat. (I wrote a reflection about it here.)
But what happened before they got into the boat? Have you ever noticed this part of the story?
Just recently, God showed me something new, which I had never previously noticed.
He showed me that it was Jesus’ idea to set sail that evening. It was Jesus who said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” (Luke 8:22) It was Jesus who sent them into the storm!
Think about this for a moment …
- Jesus didn’t say: “You go on ahead and I’ll follow later.”
Rather he said, “Let us go”, because he wanted them to travel together. He wanted them to realise he planned to be in the boat with them. He knew the storm was coming and he didn’t want them thinking they would be travelling solo.
- Jesus didn’t say, “Let us go out into the middle of the lake.”
Rather, he said, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake,” because he had the end in mind. He wanted them to focus on their destination. He knew the storm was coming and he didn’t want them getting stuck halfway.
- Jesus didn’t say, “Let us set sail and see how it goes. If the water gets too choppy, we can always turn back again.”
Rather, he said, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake,” because he wanted them to be committed to the whole journey. He knew the storm was coming and he didn’t want them thinking there was an opt-out clause.
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The response
Meanwhile, the role for the disciples was to listen, trust and obey: “So they got into a boat and set out.” (Luke 8:22)
Some of the disciples were veteran fishermen, who would have been well-acquainted with the Sea of Galilee; the rest came from a variety of employment backgrounds. Yet even the seasoned fishermen didn’t see this particular storm coming!
The Sea of Galilee sits at almost 700 feet below sea level, surrounded by hills and mountains, some of which rise up to 2000 feet above sea level. It’s approximately 13 miles long by 7 miles wide, which is why it’s sometimes described as a ‘lake’.
So, when a wind picks up and channels down those hills and mountains, it can whip up a sudden, violent storm on the water below – and it was one of those unpredictable storms that came out of nowhere that evening.
Yet it was Jesus who had told them to set sail!
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The application
How many of us have ever heard Jesus giving us a prophetic promise, telling us to set sail, which we have trusted and obeyed? Maybe it was a step of faith, a change of career, a new relationship, a house move …
How many of us have then, almost immediately, encountered a tough time? (All the people in my book, ‘Light through the Cracks’, had this experience!)
Let me tell you now:
Jesus knows what lies ahead of us. He knows the storms that are coming. And he knows what we need to hear from him in advance.
In his kindness, he reassures us that he will be with us. He gives us vision for where he is taking us. And he asks us to trust him in the journey to get there.
The challenge for many of us is that, when the storm hits, we have a tendency to immediately forget what Jesus told us in advance, become filled with fear, and lose all sense of perspective.
But what would happen if, instead, we were to consciously decide to hold onto his prophetic promises (and to keep holding on to them) until they come to pass? What if we were to start keeping Jesus’ end in mind?
Imagine what a difference it could make!
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As ever, constructive comments are welcome below.
Please note: This is my ‘thought for the month’ reflection for June. (You can find all my ‘thought for the month’ reflections here.)
Photo my own, taken in the Lake District, May 2025
6 Comments
I love the conclusions you have drawn from the Luke 8 storm story. There is a very interesting theological question about whether Jesus knew the storm was coming! The Sea of Galilee is clearly vulnerable to unpredictable storms and, although Jesus was fully human and fully divine at the same time, I like to think of him as having suspended his divine powers to live truly as a human amongst us. Which would mean he would not have known a storm was coming; but he did know that God would protect them if one did.
Thanks Andy! I appreciate your insight into the theological question about whether or not Jesus would have known a storm was coming. Either way, as you say, he would have known that God was going to protect them.
Ah, my friend. I was transported back to our trip to Isreal and how it wasn’t until the shores of Galilee, and a boat trip that we took on it, that I truly felt at home. Jesus had been on both shores in all weathers. So I find myself thinking of this, your June thought for the month, and that choice we need to make to heed what we are offered in way of advice. It is God’s grace that he gives us that choice. Will we follow and obey, or retrospectively go ‘oh that is what you were trying to tell me’?
Thank you Milli! I’m so glad to hear about the ways in which this ‘thought for the month’ has challenged you. I can also vividly remember that boat trip across the Sea of Galilee, all those years ago. Thanks for reminding me of it!
It’s good to be reminded that we can sometimes encounter storms, even when we are doing something that we know Jesus has called us to do. But so long as he is in it, and he is with us, we’ll be able to come through in safety. After all, God would never have allowed that storm to sink the boat and drown his Son. So as long as the disciples were in the same boat as Jesus, they couldn’t drown either!
Thanks Arnold! We definitely won’t drown if Jesus is with us!