Who Is This?

Read

Psalm 107:28-30 “Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.”

Think

There are people you know in one setting but have never seen in another. Maybe you have only seen a teacher standing at the front of a classroom, and then you randomly see them at a store buying cereal. It feels strange. You knew them, but suddenly you are seeing another side of who they are.

The disciples have a much more serious version of that experience in Mark 4. They already know Jesus. They have heard him teach. They have watched him heal people. They have left things behind to follow him.

Then Jesus stands in a boat and tells a storm to stop. And it listens.

Suddenly the disciples are not only afraid of the storm anymore. They are amazed by the person standing in front of them. They ask, “Who is this?”

That question is at the center of the story. The storm revealed something about Jesus they had not fully understood before. These men grew up with the Psalms. Psalm 107 describes sailors crying out to the LORD in a storm and God calming it to a whisper. In their world, only God could do that. So when Jesus did exactly what Psalm 107 says God does, the answer to their question was staggering.

Sometimes difficult seasons do that. Nobody wants the hard season. You would not choose the friendship ending, family tension, disappointment, uncertainty, or the night when your thoughts will not slow down. But those moments often expose what you actually believe about God.

It is easy to say God is trustworthy when you do not have much to trust him with. It is easy to say God is enough when everything else is going well. Then the storm hits. Suddenly the question is not just, “Do I know things about Jesus?” It becomes, “Who do I actually believe Jesus is?”

Think about the difference between reading about a roller coaster and sitting in the seat as the restraint locks over your shoulders. You can know the height, speed, and safety information. But none of that feels quite the same when you are slowly climbing the first hill.

There are things about trust you only learn when trust is required.

The disciples knew Jesus was a teacher. The storm showed them his authority. They knew he could heal people. Now they were beginning to understand that even creation responded to him.

Your difficult season may not give you every answer you want. But it can become a place where you discover more of who God is. Maybe you discover that he can handle your honest questions. Maybe you experience his comfort through another person. Maybe Scripture becomes real in a way it was not when life felt easy.

Do not only ask God to get you out of every storm. Ask him to show you who he is while you are in it. Sometimes the biggest thing God does in a storm is what you discover about him.

Apply

Ask a better question – Instead of only asking God to change one difficult situation, ask, “God, what do you want me to learn about who you are through this?” Write down anything you are beginning to notice.

Pray

God, I want to know you as more than something I hear about at church. Show me who you are in the parts of my life that are difficult and confusing. Help me notice your faithfulness, power, and presence. Use even the things I would not choose to help me know you more deeply. In Jesus’ name. Amen.