Imagine that you’re on a boat.  Sun kissed cheeks, sparkling waters, and fat fish visible just beneath the surface.  Paradise.  And then, unexpectedly, skies change quickly, and things turn awry.  Two-foot swells begin rocking the boat, causing nervous laughter as skies darken.  Three-foot swells have you hanging on the side of the boat, and now you’re looking at everyone else’s face, curious if they mirror your fear.  Waves exponentially grow larger, lapping into the boat…worst nightmare situation.  There’s not much time left. Survival instincts kick into gear, and you’re tying things down. It takes three of you to steer directly into the swells to stay afloat.  Salty pellets sting your eyes, and your eyes are glued to swells large enough to capsize the boat at any given time.  

While everyone is working tirelessly to get through this storm, someone is still sleeping.  That someone is the one who’s idea this trip was in the first place, and he is aggravatingly sleeping peacefully in the stern.

I love the subtle humor within these passages.  It makes me feel like my humor is not lost on Him.  Jesus, the One who is supposed to be our Rescuer, Savior, Comforter, is snoozing peacefully.  I wonder what He might have been dreaming amidst the fretting.

It was Jesus’ instruction to get on the boat after all, and you can hear the abandonment in the disciple’s voice when He’s woken up.   “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” A disciple asks him.  It’s what we have often asked, haven’t we?  “Can you see that I’m drowning?”