Pray Peace in the Storm - Devotional

Boma
Jan 13
3 min read

Updated: Jan 17

Series: Building Our Relationship with God

Bible verse: Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6) Image by @BomaMeansBlessed.

In Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41 and Luke 8:22-25, we read about Jesus and His disciples on a boat. Jesus slept on a pillow while a storm raged. Depending on which Gospel we read, the disciples woke Jesus saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing" (Matthew), "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?"(Mark) and "Master, Master, we are perishing!" (Luke). It is likely that all of the above were said by different disciples in their distress.

Jesus responds differently each time: In Mark and Luke, Jesus saw no faith. The disciples were in trouble but did not request help from Jesus because they did not believe He could help them. Instead of faith, their words revealed only their deep anxiety over the storm. In Matthew, where a request for help was made alongside an expression of fear, Jesus replied they had little faith. In each account, Jesus woke up and stilled the storm, despite seeing little to no faith. This revealed something of His authority to His disciples– and to us.

We do not have to wait for the storm to be over to experience God's peace. Peace fortifies us when we trust God's ability to help us. Anxiety distracts from God making us unstable in thought and emotion. Philippians 4:6-7 tells us peace protects our hearts and minds when we let our requests be made known to God by prayer and supplication (asking) with thanksgiving. We can have peace at the point of asking God to intervene.

Through faith in God it is possible to go through a storm with peace instead of anxiety because of the phrase at end the Philippians 4:5, "...the Lord is at hand". Jesus' presence in the boat could have influenced the disciples more than the storm. Likewise, we can decide to trust that God's power, proximity and plan override everything a stormy season tells us. Then, we can approach God with confident assurance of His ability to help, just like the centurion whose faith made Jesus marvel not long before He set sail (see Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10).

This year, let us build on our relationship with God through prayers that reveal our faith. Instead of stating the problems and feared outcomes as truth, let's remember that the same God who "said, "Let there be light," and there was light." (Genesis1:3), has an authoritative word to bring "great calm" to every problem we face.

Building Challenge: Consider a challenge you are facing. Focus on God's mighty power to save using Scriptures or songs of praise and worship. Thank Him for caring about you and ask for His help. Speak only God's Word about the matter. Expect to experience God's peace as anxiety diminishes. Consider writing your prayer to track answers and insights.