Suggested Scripture Readings:
Matthew 8: 35 – 41. Isaiah 32: 1 – 8
Matthew 8: 35 – 41. Isaiah 32: 1 – 8
Scripture Reference: Isaiah 32: 2. Each man will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.
In “THE TEMPEST,” William Shakespeare engages his unique artistic skills and portrays the chaos and the confusion seizing a small ship caught in a vicious storm at sea. Therefore, the master of the ship orders his boatswain to rouse the mariners to action to prevent the boat from grounding in the storm. Unfortunately, in the resulting hectic activity of the mariners, the panic-stricken onlookers are overresponsive.
Under these circumstances, the boatswain gives a timely command. “Go below deck, Go below deck,” he commands! “You do assist the storm!”
Gonzalo reminds the boatswain that one of the passengers is of some obvious importance, but the boatswain is unmoved. He will do what he has to save the ship, regardless of who is aboard.Sad, yet, nevertheless true, humans can inadvertently assist a storm in its fury. The disturbance may originate within the atmosphere, like that described by Shakespeare. But on other occasions, a disturbing incident upsetting another’s delicate mental equilibrium may quickly take on all the features of a fierce storm!
Stephen Leacock, a Canadian writer, and humorist relates just such an incident in his novel,” Gertrude the Governess.”
“Lord Nosh stood upon the hearthrug of the library. Trained diplomat and statesman as he was, his stern aristocratic face was upside down with fury.”
Lord Nosh directs his fury towards his young son, Lord Ronald. The son returns a look of complete defiance towards his father. Lord Ronald said nothing; he flung himself from the room, flung himself upon his horse and rode madly off in all directions.
The boatswain’s guidelines are stringent for whatever circumstance stirs strife within a person: ‘Go below deck! Go below deck!” It is always time for each of us to go inside ourselves and use whatever time remaining to us to learn the secret of composure and celebrate the conquest that makes us truly human. The promise of the Prophet Isaiah is the complete antithesis of distressed behavior.
“Each one will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.” Is it not a phenomenon worthy of consideration since according to Isaiah, it is a promise made to all? But what is the qualifying prerequisite that makes Isaiah’s pledge a “future” reality? “Each one will be like a shelter from the wind…etc. But when? How great an effort must we make to learn that awe-inspiring secret, in this world so filled with sound and fury that it makes Isaiah’s promise sound like an idle tale?
The solemn truth is, NO ONE can ever learn to mirror the condition of which Isaiah speaks! That secret will never reveal itself through scholarly expositions, or by personal resolutions, no matter how sincere one’s effort. It is a gift from God! Is it not true, generally speaking, that the response towards an offered gift is ACCEPTANCE?
Is it not an urgent need at this juncture in our experience to “Go Below Deck” and to review your relationship with God? Do you know enough about Him, to bring assurance at this moment that you are “like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land “?
Under these circumstances, the boatswain gives a timely command. “Go below deck, Go below deck,” he commands! “You do assist the storm!”
Gonzalo reminds the boatswain that one of the passengers is of some obvious importance, but the boatswain is unmoved. He will do what he has to save the ship, regardless of who is aboard.Sad, yet, nevertheless true, humans can inadvertently assist a storm in its fury. The disturbance may originate within the atmosphere, like that described by Shakespeare. But on other occasions, a disturbing incident upsetting another’s delicate mental equilibrium may quickly take on all the features of a fierce storm!
Stephen Leacock, a Canadian writer, and humorist relates just such an incident in his novel,” Gertrude the Governess.”
“Lord Nosh stood upon the hearthrug of the library. Trained diplomat and statesman as he was, his stern aristocratic face was upside down with fury.”
Lord Nosh directs his fury towards his young son, Lord Ronald. The son returns a look of complete defiance towards his father. Lord Ronald said nothing; he flung himself from the room, flung himself upon his horse and rode madly off in all directions.
The boatswain’s guidelines are stringent for whatever circumstance stirs strife within a person: ‘Go below deck! Go below deck!” It is always time for each of us to go inside ourselves and use whatever time remaining to us to learn the secret of composure and celebrate the conquest that makes us truly human. The promise of the Prophet Isaiah is the complete antithesis of distressed behavior.
“Each one will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.” Is it not a phenomenon worthy of consideration since according to Isaiah, it is a promise made to all? But what is the qualifying prerequisite that makes Isaiah’s pledge a “future” reality? “Each one will be like a shelter from the wind…etc. But when? How great an effort must we make to learn that awe-inspiring secret, in this world so filled with sound and fury that it makes Isaiah’s promise sound like an idle tale?
The solemn truth is, NO ONE can ever learn to mirror the condition of which Isaiah speaks! That secret will never reveal itself through scholarly expositions, or by personal resolutions, no matter how sincere one’s effort. It is a gift from God! Is it not true, generally speaking, that the response towards an offered gift is ACCEPTANCE?
Is it not an urgent need at this juncture in our experience to “Go Below Deck” and to review your relationship with God? Do you know enough about Him, to bring assurance at this moment that you are “like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land “?
It seems to me that the world has no greater need in this hour than for people of Faith to accept from God the things we can never do for ourselves! There is an urgent need, in this hour of diminished trust in the activity of the eternal, for people professing a religious experience to re-encounter the God of their professed religion. It is double the terror for anyone to” Go Below Deck” in a storm, and encounter there, only a rumbling emptiness because God has been crowded out by a hectic lifestyle. Therefore, hear the positive assertion by Isaiah that each one shall be the recipient of this fantastic promise! Humankind must understand themselves as being IN GOD, and as deriving FROM GOD, and not as the product of their own effort and achievement.
The One, whom Christians call the Master of Life, provides the most authentic demonstration of an individual’s response to those caught in the throes of a debilitating storm. Jesus, along with His disciples, is on a vicious storm-swept sea of Galilee. Unlike the terrified oarsmen who are contemplating certain death, Jesus is fast asleep in the stern of the same boat.” Carest Thou not that we perish?” they screech above the sound of the frightening waves. Who could ever miss the stark contrast in behavior between the despairing disciples and their serene Master? According to Jesus, what left the disciples in such dire stress was the lack of Faith,’ below deck’ of each participant. “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Jesus asks them. Jesus own state of Faith both “on deck, and below” was always the same, and resoundingly positive; “Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.” What astounding evidence that a person can be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land. YOU can be a further witness of this same glorious truth!
The One, whom Christians call the Master of Life, provides the most authentic demonstration of an individual’s response to those caught in the throes of a debilitating storm. Jesus, along with His disciples, is on a vicious storm-swept sea of Galilee. Unlike the terrified oarsmen who are contemplating certain death, Jesus is fast asleep in the stern of the same boat.” Carest Thou not that we perish?” they screech above the sound of the frightening waves. Who could ever miss the stark contrast in behavior between the despairing disciples and their serene Master? According to Jesus, what left the disciples in such dire stress was the lack of Faith,’ below deck’ of each participant. “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Jesus asks them. Jesus own state of Faith both “on deck, and below” was always the same, and resoundingly positive; “Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.” What astounding evidence that a person can be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land. YOU can be a further witness of this same glorious truth!
Prayer To End This Meditation
You are invited to make this prayer your own
O Lord, from the beginning of creation You showed a preference for serenity and calm.
You ordered Your Spirit to brood over the darkness and the chaos which were retarding the progress of Your proposed Creation. “And you saw that it was good!”
You ordered Your Spirit to brood over the darkness and the chaos which were retarding the progress of Your proposed Creation. “And you saw that it was good!”
Wherever storms are causing chaos, either as the result of atmospheric disturbances or by individuals and nations in conflict, remind us, followers of Christ, of Your hovering Spirit, and enable us to bring Peace where there are far too many others who assist the storm.
We can expect to see the influence of Your Spirit, only after chaos and darkness have been eliminated, first from our own souls. Without the touch of Your hand, we may see the goal but we remain helpless to produce lasting results:
“Where cross the crowded ways of life, Where sound the cries of race and clan, Above the noise of selfish strife, We hear Thy voice, O Son Of Man.”
Breathe on us, Breath of God, and give us spirits, strong like steel, so that we will always stand firm for You. Amen. So Let It be.
HYMN: Master, The Tempest Is Raging
Master, the tempest is raging!
The billows are tossing high!
The sky is o’ershadowed with blackness,
No shelter or help is nigh;
Carest Thou not that we perish?
How canst Thou lie asleep,
When each moment so madly is threat’ning
A grave in the angry deep?
Refrain:
The winds and the waves shall obey Thy will,
Peace, be still!
Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea,
Or demons or men, or whatever it be,
No waters can swallow the ship where lies
The Master of ocean, and earth, and skies;
They all shall sweetly obey Thy will,
Peace, be still! Peace, be still!
They all shall sweetly obey Thy will,
Peace, peace, be still!
Master, with anguish of spirit
I bow in my grief today;
The depths of my sad heart are troubled—
Oh, waken and save, I pray!
Torrents of sin and of anguish
Sweep o’er my sinking soul;
And I perish! I perish! dear Master—
Oh, hasten, and take control.
Master, the terror is over,
The elements sweetly rest;
Earth’s sun in the calm lake is mirrored,
And heaven’s within my breast;
Linger, O blessed Redeemer!
Leave me alone no more;
And with joy, I shall make the blest harbour,
And rest on the blissful shore.
The billows are tossing high!
The sky is o’ershadowed with blackness,
No shelter or help is nigh;
Carest Thou not that we perish?
How canst Thou lie asleep,
When each moment so madly is threat’ning
A grave in the angry deep?
Refrain:
The winds and the waves shall obey Thy will,
Peace, be still!
Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea,
Or demons or men, or whatever it be,
No waters can swallow the ship where lies
The Master of ocean, and earth, and skies;
They all shall sweetly obey Thy will,
Peace, be still! Peace, be still!
They all shall sweetly obey Thy will,
Peace, peace, be still!
Master, with anguish of spirit
I bow in my grief today;
The depths of my sad heart are troubled—
Oh, waken and save, I pray!
Torrents of sin and of anguish
Sweep o’er my sinking soul;
And I perish! I perish! dear Master—
Oh, hasten, and take control.
Master, the terror is over,
The elements sweetly rest;
Earth’s sun in the calm lake is mirrored,
And heaven’s within my breast;
Linger, O blessed Redeemer!
Leave me alone no more;
And with joy, I shall make the blest harbour,
And rest on the blissful shore.