Jesus had spent the whole day teaching a crowd by the Sea of Galilee. He spoke for hours, told parables, answered questions, and by the end of the day he was very tired.

When evening came, he said to his disciples:

"Let us cross over to the other side."

The disciples sent the crowd away and took Jesus in the boat, just as he was. There were other little boats with them too. Jesus was so tired that he went to the stern of the boat, lay down on a cushion, and fell asleep.

The disciples rowed along peacefully. Many of them were experienced fishermen: Peter, Andrew, James, and John knew that sea well, for they had spent their whole lives fishing there. They could read the sky, feel the wind, and guess the weather just by looking at the clouds. The boat glided smoothly over the water, the sun was slowly setting, and everything was calm.

But suddenly, everything changed.

The wind began to blow hard, rushing down from the mountains without any warning. The waves grew bigger and bigger, striking the boat violently, one after another, throwing water inside.

The disciples tried to control the boat. They pulled at the sails, rowed with all their strength, and bailed out the water pouring in. But the storm was too strong. The wind howled, the boat rose and fell on the giant waves, and water came in from every side.

Even the experienced fishermen were afraid. They knew that sea, but they had never seen such a terrible storm. The boat was filling with water, and they thought they were going to die.

And where was Jesus during all of this? There in the stern of the boat, on the cushion, Jesus slept. The waves crashed, and he slept. The wind howled, and he slept. The disciples ran back and forth, and Jesus went on sleeping peacefully, like a child at home in his own bed.

How could he sleep in the middle of a storm like that? Jesus was not afraid, because he trusted the Father. He knew he was safe, no matter what happened.

At last, the disciples went to Jesus and woke him, crying out:

"Master! Master! We are going to sink. Don't you care?"

Jesus woke up. He looked around and saw the raging storm, the strong wind, the enormous waves, the terrified disciples. Then he stood up and rebuked the wind, saying to the sea:

That very instant, the wind stopped blowing. The giant waves settled down, one by one, and the sea became as smooth as a mirror. It happened so quickly that the disciples could hardly believe their eyes.

A moment before, there had been enormous waves and howling wind. Now everything was quiet and still. Jesus had spoken, and nature obeyed.

Then Jesus turned to his disciples and asked:

It was a gentle rebuke. The Son of God was right there, in the boat, with them. Why so much fear? The disciples could have trusted that Jesus would take care of them, even while he slept. But they were still learning to trust.

The disciples were filled with wonder and great awe. They said to one another:

They had already seen Jesus heal the sick and teach with a wisdom no one else had. But now they had seen Jesus give orders to nature itself, and nature obey at once. Only God has power over the wind and the sea, for it was He who made them. And that evening, in the middle of the lake, Jesus showed that he had that same power, because Jesus is God.

Sometimes storms appear in our lives too: troubles, frights, things that scare us. But Jesus is with us in the boat, and a single word from him is enough. We can trust him, even when it seems he is sleeping.