This Weekend's Message: Caught in a Storm

I once had to play music on a cruise ship. It was just a little 3-day Royal Caribbean cruise down to Ensenada, Mexico and back. About 24 minutes into the cruise, the boat began to sway from side to side, which I was told tends to happen on a boat. One hour and 54 minutes into the cruise, the boat was not only swaying, it was pitching up and down like one of those carnival rides that little kids love, but adults tend to be smart enough to avoid. As it turns out, we had “encountered some less than ideal seas.” About 3 hours and 44 minutes into the cruise, I was a shade of green that can only be described as Grinch-like. Every person that passed me in the halls asked if I was okay. My fellow band mates invited me to lay down on the floor backstage, but as they say, the show must go on. So, I spent the next 3 days playing 3 times a day on a stage that was rocking back and forth the way a set of high school bleachers does during a pep rally. My number one goal was not to play well, hit right notes, or even look like I was having a good time; it was to NOT throw up in my saxophone. As a bonus, once we docked, I discovered that just because the cruise was over and I disembarked, does not mean the swaying stops, and I proceeded to be nauseous for an additional day or so.

Needless to say, my career of choice was not going to have anything to do with cruises, or boats...or water for that matter (with the exception of baptisms). Storms are scary things, and storms in life can take a huge toll, especially when we believe we are out there alone. But why do the storms have to happen? Why doesn’t God just take care of things to protect us from having to feel bad? This Sunday we will be looking at the ever-popular, but possibly under-considered, event of Jesus walking on water (John 6:16-21). Was that event just for thrills? Just so Jesus could show off? Or was He Declassifying some things about the nature of God and His interaction with those willing to follow Him?

See ya Sunday! (No barf bags required!)
Jeff