Peace Be Still

Peace, Be Still
By Emma Schlangenhausen

And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?
Mark 4:39-40

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"There is a mortal tendency, even a temptation, when we find ourselves in the middle of trials, troubles, or afflictions to cry out, 'Master, carest thou not that I perish? Save me.' I can imagine that Jesus’s disciples in the storm-tossed boat were, of necessity, busy watching the waves crash onto their deck and bailing out the water. I can picture them handling the sails and trying to maintain some semblance of control over their little craft. Their focus was on surviving the moment, and their plea for help was urgently sincere. Many of us are no different in our day. In times of turmoil our faith can feel stretched to the limits of our endurance and understanding. Waves of fear can distract us, causing us to forget God’s goodness, thus leaving our perspective short-sighted and out of focus. Yet it is in these rough stretches of our journey that our faith can be not only tried but fortified." – Lisa Harkness

“I testify of God’s love and the Savior’s power to calm the storm. Always remember in that biblical story that He was out there on the water also, that He faced the worst of it right along with the newest and youngest and most fearful. Only one who has fought against those ominous waves is justified in telling us—as well as the sea—to ‘be still.’” – Jeffrey R. Holland

“God may calm your storm, but more often He’ll calm you first and let the storm rage on. He’s not just the Lord of the calm, He's the Lord of the storm.” – A.W. Tozer

~~~~~~~~~~~~~