Why Do You Worry or Fear?

Reading Time: 2 minutes

In many parts of the Bible, we find Jesus rebuking people, especially his followers, for doubting Him or the power of God. One such scenario that I want to focus on today is in Matthew.

Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with his disciples. Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey him!”

Matthew 8:23-27 (NLT)

The funniest part of this story is when they called Him, “Lord.” Lord? As in, God? 🤔 Hmm, interesting. Before then, they had seen countless miracles of Jesus and had begun to, not only believe in His Lordship, but witness it. In fact, just earlier that day, when they were up on the mountain, Jesus had been teaching them not to worry. He had said, “…do not worry about your life… Look at the birds of the air… your heavenly Father [takes care of] them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?” – Matthew 6:25-27, brackets mine. Yet, here they were, hours later, doing the exact same thing which the same Lord had just taught them not to do – worrying for their lives. Did they not think that, if they were sinking, they were sinking with God?

Moreover, we find ourselves, many times, in the same boat of worry and fear as Jesus and His disciples in this story. Maybe you’re broke, or even ‘broker than broke;’ so deep in debt with so little or no income because you couldn’t find a job. You don’t know how the next meal is going to come, or when. You don’t know how you’re going to keep that promise you just made. A sick relative or friend of yours urgently needs the medical attention that neither you nor they can afford. Many of these dire situations might even be as a result of the wrong choices you made. But God has sent me to you today to tell you that it doesn’t matter whose fault it is. He says I should tell you that He doesn’t play the blame game.

Therefore, listen to the Lord who created you. The one who formed you says,

“Do not be afraid, for I have redeemed you.
    I have called you by name; you are Mine.
When you go through deep waters,
    I will be with you.
When you go through rivers of difficulty,
    you will not drown.
When you walk through the fire of oppression,
    you will not be burned up;
    the flames will not consume you.
For I am the Lord, your God, your Savior, and your friend.
We’re in this together. Trust Me.” 💪

paraphrased from Isaiah 43:1-3

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