He Comes in the Midst of the Storm

A homily about Jesus walking across the water during a storm brought comfort to Christine Johnson during a time of struggle.

I’ve written a lot over the last few years about struggling with prayer and faith. It’s been a constant in my own faith life, and I’ve been navigating a life where my prayers are not necessarily being answered in the way I had hoped they’d be answered. Much of the time, I just struggle along and hang on as best as I can. But sometimes God sends me the comfort that I desperately need.

About a month or so ago, the Gospel was about Peter walking on the water during the great storm. Saint Peter is my favorite: he’s impetuous and bold and outspoken and very often speaks before he thinks. But he’s also deeply in love with God and deeply convicted in the knowledge that Jesus is the Christ—Son of the living God.

In his homily, Father talked about the storms of life that rock us down to our cores. He talked about how the waves are personified in the original Greek—that they “harassed” the Apostles. He talked about how they were stuck in this awful storm for hours and hours—maybe 8 to 10 hours in the dark of the night. And then Jesus appeared, just walking across the water like it was nothing.

Jesus came in the middle of the storm. He did not make the storm go away immediately, but came to them in the middle of it to offer comfort right there.

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Father also talked about false spirits that try to warp our understanding of God and keep us from reaching out in total trust to our Father in heaven. God does not desire our suffering, he said. He might not eliminate that suffering exactly when we ask, but He does come to us in the midst of it so that He can comfort us.

Then he led us in a prayer that I can’t even remember well, but centered around asking God to come to us in the storms of our lives, to help us in our suffering, and to dispel false spirits who are distracting us and telling us lies about God.

I can’t even say how deeply this reached into my soul. It was as if Jesus came and sat next to me and said, “Sweetie, we need to talk,” and then gave all of this to me. It was an absolute gift that brought a lot of healing to my soul.

Click to tweet:
Jesus will come to you in the middle of the storm. The storm might keep raging around you, but He is there. #CatholicMom

I know there are other moms and dads who are suffering and hurting. It doesn’t matter if your children are small and dependent on you or grown up and living adult lives. Sometimes we hurt so badly for our children that it overwhelms us. If you’re feeling like that, know that you’re not alone. And know, too, that Jesus is still here. He will come to you in the middle of the storm. The storm might keep raging around you, but He is there. And He is the Lord of Heaven and Earth and any storm that might seem to be be shaking your life apart.

Don’t lose hope. Don’t let go. And don’t believe that God wants you to suffer always. We might have to suffer for a time, but it will not be forever. He will not abandon you because He loves you. And He loves your children, too. Let’s all pray for each other to develop a deeper trust in God and His plans for your family.

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