Tuesday, January 17, 2017

IS JESUS SLEEPING?

Written by Angeline M Duran Santiago



What do you say when it seems your world is spinning around you and you can’t make it stop? Do you allow yourself to be spun around until you breathlessly crash on to the floor? Do you surrender to the voices that say, “God is not answering this prayer. Let it go!” or, do you hold on and say, “Come on! Hit me with your best shot!”
I guess that’s where you find me right now. I wouldn’t be surprised to find many of your own heads moving in agreement with me. We’ve been hit left and right with all kinds of sickness and problems. It hasn’t been easy because the truth is, it doesn’t seem to let up and stop. “Pray.” Yes, we’ve prayed. “Have faith.” Yep. I believe with all my heart. “Don’t lose hope.” Hey, we’re still hanging on but it does get hard sometimes, right? I mean, we pray and wait and wait a little more. Still, our child wakes up sick to end up missing one more school day. Mind you, he’s been out about a hundred already. You pray. I pray. But, those family moments when we forget Christ is present happen out of the blue and we end up in misunderstandings and hurtful words. But, we prayed, right? Still, the storms come, the issues persist and the illness remains.


 Jesus is in the boat. You know the story. They decided to go to the other side, this big storm show up and starts wrecking havoc, these strong men of God get all stressed and scared, and well, where was Jesus? Oh, yeah, He was asleep somewhere on the boat. Some say, “He didn’t care!” or, “It’s not a time to nap!” But, to Him who created the very winds that were dancing around them, Christ was not amazed or shocked with the current dilemma. Jesus, who knows our present and our future, was totally aware of the horrible scene they were all facing. God is totally aware of the crisis you and I are dealing with right now. Jesus is with us, in our homes, in the hospital, and at our jobs or our schools, and He is, well, asleep. He has already taken care of the problem. He knows when the storm will end. He knows that no matter the trauma, we are still going to get to the other side. Jesus knows that at the end of this storm we will be able to say, “He was with us through it all.”
But, He’s asleep. Or is He? Is the Lord just waiting for us to say, “Lord! We’re getting ready to perish! Some help, here!” or is the Lord trying to show us what to do in the midst of the emergency phone call you and I just got? I love the scripture that says, “Be still and know that I am God.” It reminds me that Jesus was at peace during the storm. The waves crashed and the winds hollered, still he remained calm. The disciples didn’t get it. Instead of sitting with him and saying, “Hey, if Jesus is resting through this, then maybe we should, too.” No. They panicked and awakened Him. “HELP!!!!”


 Lord, help me to be still and learn from you. I often wonder if you’ll truly get my son to the other side where he will experience a breakthrough from sickness. Today, Lord, I am confidently reminded that in the midst of the storms that crash against his body and against my family, you are inviting me to sit with you and rest. Lord, you are inviting your children, mothers and fathers that desperately cry out to you with so many problems, you pat the space next to you on the boat and with your loving eyes, you invite us to sit with you and maybe nod out for some much needed sleep. Lord, last night was another sleepless night. I can only remember and think of so many parents that spend their nights in the hospital. I’ve been there and I remember the times my mom spent weeks and months by my brother’s side during some extremely urgent moments of faith for our family. 


Lord, give us the understanding to sit down at your feet and learn from You. Give us the peace in our hearts that you have heard our prayers and that you will speak to our storms and command them the stop. You will say, “Peace” to the sick bodies and they were be healed. You will speak “Peace” to the problems and your Presence will make all the difference in that situation. You are the Lord and King in my boat. 
I’m going home soon and I know the journey to complete healing and wholeness is not a quick one. My commute home takes at least two and a half hours, but as I ride out, I will meditate on the Lord’s Word. I will place my confidence on Him, because if He is calm about my storm, then I can close my eyes, lay my head against the hard wooden surface on the boat, and just like my Lord, who promises to speak peace into my storm, close my eyes, and take a snooze.


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