By Karen Sheehy at spiritualsafariguide.com
Untitled via Pixabay. CCO
“Faith is like radar that sees through the fog, the reality of things at a distance that the human eye cannot see,” from The Hiding Place by Corrie Temp Boom.1
The Sea of Galilee, a large freshwater lake in Israel, is 13 miles long, 8.1 miles wide, and approximately 33 miles in circumference. Much of the ministry of Jesus occurred on the shores of this sea, including the recruitment of His first four apostles (Simon, Andrew, John and James), the Sermon on the Mount, the walking on water, the miraculous catch, and the calming of the storm.
The calm waters of the Sea of Galilee can quickly become transformed by an unexpected and powerful wind storm. Trapped in a basin, between the hills of Galilee and the eastern Golan Heights, these winds can prove deadly for fishermen. We read about such a violent storm in the gospel account called, The Calming of the Storm, (Mark 5:37-40). During this event, violent winds created large waves, over 10 feet tall, which began to over take the small, open fishing boat of the apostles. Awakened, Jesus asked, “Why are you so terrified? Why are you lacking faith?” By asking these questions, Jesus pointed out, to His apostles and us, the true source of fear and anxiety: a lack of certitude or belief in God’s loving providence.
Jesus’ subsequent calming of the storm should provide us with a great sense of peace, amidst the trials and uncertainties in our lives, even when it appears that Jesus, Himself, is asleep or unaware of our current situation. At these times, when fear and anxiety try to over power us, let us pray for the courage and faith to place our trust in God’s loving concern.
In closing, let us consider a few additional quotes from The Hiding Place1, by Corrie Temps Boom, a Dutch Watchmaker and Christian who, along with her family members, helped many Jews escape the Nazi holocaust during World War II.
“Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”
“There is no panic in Heaven! God has no problems, only plans.”
“When we are powerless to do a thing, it is a great joy that we can come and step inside the ability of Jesus.”
“There is no ‘ifs’ in God’s Kingdom. His timing is perfect. His will is our hiding place. Lord, Jesus, keep me in Your will! Don’t let me go mad by poking about outside it.”
1 Corrie Temp Boom and Elizabeth Sherrill, The Hiding Place, Chosen Books, Grand Rapids, MI, 2006.
About the Author:
Karen Sheehy is a devout Catholic, wife and mother, motivational speaker, blogger and developer of spiritualsafariguide.com, your passport to a world of spiritual inspiration and understanding. To learn more about Karen Sheehy and her upcoming book entitled, The Healing Eyes of Mercy. A Journey Towards the Light of God’s Love, visit http://www.spiritualsafariguide.com
Thanks for the powerful message and reminder. I especially like the quote about an unknown future and a known God. I really needed this message today
Karen – This is SO timely for me today !
Last night I disappointingly let fear and anxiety get to me. Normally a strong woman, I actually melted down
on my husband for the first time in years…
My hopes that our only daughter (31) and her husband – who have lived in Florida for 7 years now –
would return to the PA area when they start a family seem to be vanishing, my prayers that she would
live near all our family and her long-time friends again unanswered.
I feel like I’m going mad because instead of being genuinely happy and full of Joy that our son-in-law
got a new job, albeit temporary, giving them both jobs with stable, well established companies in FL all
I can think about is an uncertain future.
I can’t envision what my life, our lives, will be like when they have children
I know I should not be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God, but (there’s that but word…)
I’m afraid I won’t see our daughter enough, I’m afraid that our close relationship will be impacted, I’m afraid that
we won’t be able to establish a close relationship with their children, our grandchildren.
I cannot see through the fog of how our lives will be when they live in FL with children.
My human mind cannot see the reality of things at a distance.
Our daughter is not even pregnant yet so worrying about an uncertain future is impacting my present happiness.
I know I must be willing to let go of the life I “planned” so as to have the life that is waiting for us !
I know my faith needs to be bigger than my fears.
I know God gives us dreams a size too big so we can grow into them.
I always was receptive to the idea of being a “snow bird” – or “snow ball”, but
For this to happen my husband I must be willing to do something we’ve never done –
live someplace else longer than a week or so.
The best way to predict the future is to create it !
Just being able to “write” this down helped !!
So glad it helped. Letting Him lead seems to be the best approach!!! Why didn’t I figure that one out earlier in life?
I am much like that too, but verbal. Sometimes just speaking whats in my heart, or in your case writing, helps to release my fears and replace them with the hope and joy of a great adventure lying just ahead!