Peace is hard to find these days. Our lives are crammed with busyness. We hear stories of tragedy and anxiously watch inflation raise the cost of living. We may face broken relationships, conflict-filled marriages, or health problems, and wonder when we will get a moment to rest and find peace in the turbulent waves of life.

I have walked through trials that left me wondering, Lord, where are You, and what are You doing? The disciples wondered that too. One day Jesus had finished teaching many parables to a large crowd, then climbed into a boat with His disciples to cross the sea. As they traveled, a storm arose, one big enough that experienced fishermen feared for their lives as the boat took on water. When the disciples came to Jesus for help, they found Him fast asleep on a cushion.

And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 4:38-41, ESV).

Why was Jesus sleeping while the boat sank? It made the disciples think He didn’t care. Sometimes we face trials that leave us wondering the same thing.

Through Jesus’ example, we learn a profound lesson about peace. Amid the storm, He sleeps — but not because He doesn’t care. We know the Lord cares for even the birds and the lilies, and that we are much more precious to God than those things (Matthew 6:25-33)!  When we call, He calmly rebukes the waves and tells them, “Peace!” As with His disciples, our Savior rides through the storm with us, just as He promises: “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

Unlike the disciples, Jesus is never frantic about the storm, because He knows the power the Father has given Him. That same peace Jesus possesses is made available to us: “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful” (John 14:27).

Christ did not promise an easy life; He said we would face tribulation (16:33). When we feel as though we are riding the turbulent waves of life and our boat is sinking, we know that we have access to the Prince of Peace
(Isaiah 9:6). We can find courage in His arms. And whether He calms the storm or rides it out with us, we know we are never alone.

Run to Christ and let “the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension . . . guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). Let Him speak over your heart, “Peace! Be still.”