John 14:1 states, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.”
When I was a boy, I loved the water even though I couldn’t swim. I would dive off of the diving board and come up by the ladder. If I missed by a few feet I could dog paddle. When I was about 14, my dad taught me how to swim in just a few minutes. We waded out into the lake. “It’s as easy as picking apples. Just fall out into the water. With your left arm, reach out ahead of you as to pick an apple. With your hand cupped, pull it down to your waist. Cup the apple in your right hand. Pull it down your side and put it in the basket. Slowly paddle your feet back and forth.” Immediately I was doing the sidestroke. A few days later I felt very confident. I decided to swim across the channel by our cabin. Halfway across I was tired and I started to panic. The shore looked far away—looking back was just as far. I chose to go forward, finally making it. For a moment my heart was troubled.
In Mark 4:35-41 we see the disciples out in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. A great windstorm created waves that were flooding the boat. It was Jesus’ idea to cross over the lake in the first place. He was asleep in the back of the boat on a pillow. They were “so fearful.” Yes, their hearts were troubled.
Maybe you find yourself today in the midst of a troubled sea. You might wish to go back to the peaceful waters you knew, even to solid ground. The threatening waves of life are about to sink your ship. When we look around us we see others in the same boat. They can’t help us, or we them. We may wonder if anyone cares. The disciples asked Jesus if He cared. All we can think of is perishing. The disciples called out to Jesus in fear. Jesus answered in verse 40, “…Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith?”
I wonder how the rest of the account turned out. Jesus of course wasn’t worried, knowing He could calm the storm at any time. What if Peter had rebuked the wind? Would it have ceased? When the wind ceased was the boat still full of water? If they had more faith could they have walked on the water to shore? (In my high school Sunday school class, the preacher’s daughter said to me, “You’re not supposed to ask questions like that.”)
When our hearts are troubled, many unanswered questions arise. The bottom line was they did go to Jesus and He delivered them. We live in troubled times. Luke 21:25-26 could be describing our days. “And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.”
Stress is a form of fear. We know that stress is hard on the heart, even in some cases causing heart failure. Stress can become insurmountable when it seems there is no way out. I read of a study the other day of the higher-than-normal suicide rate among Washington state farmers because it is becoming impossible to farm with so many regulations, high costs, and low prices for their crops.
In our text, Jesus was leaving only to return. He’s coming soon! No time for THE TROUBLED HEART!
