Shaking

Matthew 8:23-26 - When Jesus got into the boat his disciples followed him. But look! a great shaking began in the lake so that the boat was being covered/swamped by the waves. And he was asleep. The disciples woke him saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" But he said to them, "Why; are you afraid? You of little faith." And he rose and rebuked the winds and the lake. And there followed a great calm.

I find it interesting that the word "seismos" means shaking - not only of the earth but of other things. So there was a great shaking of the water - a storm. It is very descriptive! And I am thinking about the shakings in our own lives. Do we react like the disciples? Do we give up? Or do we trust? These are strange questions because the disciples do trust - they know Jesus will fix the problem. So why does he say they have only a little faith? There is clearly something I'm missing here.

Is he saying that trust in God means praying? Had they tried praying? The text doesn't tell us. Who were they not trusting? Maybe he is saying that God in heaven - not Jesus is who they lack faith in. That is difficult for me, living in the 21st century, to get. Because we talk so much about faith in Jesus. We forget that his own faith was in "his father in heaven." So, they went to a person - a creation if you will - rather than the one who could help, God. Did they already see Jesus as God? I would judge from his reaction that they did not.

So, what do I do when the shaking begins? Do I pray? Not usually. Unfortunately, I tend to do that last. I do pray in the morning and sit in silence, listening for God. It just does not carry throughout the day yet. That, and the shaking has to be fairly major - like Eric's manipulation - to impact me enough to pray first.

I think Paul's advice to pray without ceasing is germane here. Help me to remember to pray without ceasing.
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