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Sometimes we can do everything right and still have something very wrong happen to us. There's a story in the Bible that talks about this exact thing. Jesus had just preached to multitudes and done miracles, and it was time to part ways. This is what He then told his disciples to do:
Matthew 14
Then He directed the disciples to get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent away the crowds.
The part of the story that I never noticed before is where it says He directed the disciples. He directed them to get into the boat, travel on the sea, and go to the other side. They were obeying Him. They were doing everything they knew to do to live their life just like Jesus told them to. Then, what happened?
But the boat was by this time out on the sea, distant from the land, beaten and tossed by the waves, for the wind was against them.
They were doing right. They were obeying. They were following Jesus’s instructions to them. And they were tossed and beaten because the wind was against them. They were in the middle of the biggest storm of their lives even though they were supposedly exactly where Jesus told them to be. Our mind says this isn’t right. Our elementary school experiences tell us that when we obey and do right, we get a reward. Not get thrown into the middle of a storm.
The Bible doesn’t tell us what the disciples said at this point, but I can imagine what I think most people would say: "Where are You, Jesus?! I did what You told me to, and this is what I get?! It’s dark, I’m scared, and I don’t know what to do!"
The Bible says that this happened somewhere around 3am - the darkest part of the night. We can obey, we can trust, and we can still find ourselves in a storm that is raging against us. We can still experience the darkest moments of our lives right in the middle of following Jesus exactly. Why would God allow this to happen? Why didn’t it happen to the crowds that casually sought Jesus on the land? Why did it happen to the deeply committed disciples? The next part of the story tells us why if we truly want to know.
Jesus came to them, walking on the sea
These men got to see a miracle that the crowds didn’t get to see. These men got to see Jesus in a way that the others did not. These men got to know Jesus in way that the multitudes wouldn’t know. The crowds came to Jesus, but Jesus came to the men in the storm. Not only did He come to them, but He came in authority. He came walking on the very thing that was tossing them back and forth.
When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!”
Jesus Christ came to them with authority. He came not just with, but as the very solution to their problems. And they didn’t even recognize Him. They were so consumed with fear, that it blinded them to the presence of their savior in their midst. I guarantee that if it would have been possible for them to run, those men would have run away from the very thing that would have rescued them. Jesus spoke to them and said what Love says:
“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!”
When Jesus comes to us, He calms our fears. He gives us courage to face the storm, and He doesn’t leave us on our own. When He provides a miraculous meal to the multitudes, they love Him for what He can give to them. When we go through our darkest moments in the storm, and He comes to us personally, we learn to love Him as our greatest need.
Jesus came to the men in the boat, but the men had a choice at that point. Would they choose to believe and trust Him, or would they barricade themselves in the boat? One man made a choice we can all follow:
Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.”
“Yes, come,” Jesus said.
So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus.
Father God, I realized from this story that I can do everything right that I know to do and there can still be a storm that I find myself in. Please help me to not question You or blame You. Please help me look for You in my darkest hour. I believe You come to me and that You are over all the things that are coming against me. Thank You for calming my fears and allowing me to know You in a way that so many others don’t. When You tell me to come to You, help me always step out of the storm around me and run to You!