Sometimes faith will put you in a boat that still encounters a storm.

In Mark 6, Jesus told His disciples to get into a boat and go ahead of Him to the other side of the sea. They obeyed. But as they crossed the Sea of Galilee, the wind became difficult, and the disciples found themselves struggling against it.

Their obedience did not keep them from the storm. And sometimes we need to remember that.

Going through a difficult season does not necessarily mean you have missed God. The disciples were in the boat because Jesus had told them to go.

But this was not the disciples' first experience with a storm.

Earlier in Mark's Gospel, Jesus and the disciples were crossing the sea when a great windstorm arose. The waves were breaking into the boat, and Jesus was asleep. The disciples woke Him and asked, in fear, whether He cared that they were perishing.

Jesus got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm.
Mark 4:35–41

They had already experienced Jesus speaking directly to their circumstances. They knew He had authority over the wind and the sea. That experience mattered when they found themselves in another storm. They were still able to trust Jesus enough to remain in the boat and struggle against the wind.

But Mark 6 presents a different lesson.

This time, Jesus was not immediately speaking to the wind.

He was speaking to them.

As the disciples struggled against the wind, they saw Jesus coming toward them on the sea. But they did not recognize Him. They thought He was a ghost, and Scripture says they were terrified. That is significant because Jesus was right there, but their fear made it difficult for them to recognize Him.

Sometimes our circumstances can become so overwhelming that they affect the way we see everything, including Jesus.

We can become so focused on the wind, the waves, the uncertainty, and the struggle that we fail to recognize the One who is coming toward us.

The disciples had already learned that Jesus could speak to a storm. Now they needed to learn to listen when Jesus speaks to them in the storm.

When Jesus saw their fear, He spoke.
He said:
“Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
— Mark 6:50, ESV

Notice what Jesus addressed. He spoke to them. In the earlier storm, Jesus spoke to the wind and the sea, and the circumstances became calm (Mark 4:39).

In this later storm, Jesus came to His disciples and spoke words of assurance to them. Then He got into the boat, and the wind ceased (Mark 6:51). There is a lesson here for us.

We often want Jesus to speak to our circumstances.
“Change this.”
“Fix this.”
“Make this stop.”

And there is nothing wrong with bringing those requests to God. But sometimes, while we are waiting for the circumstances to change, we may miss the fact that Jesus is speaking to us.
The storm is part of our temporal reality. But Jesus wants us to see beyond the here and now and recognize Him.

He's speaking to you, not the storm.

If you are in a storm right now, do not only listen to the storm.

Listen for Jesus.

The circumstances may be loud. Fear may be loud. Uncertainty may be loud. But Jesus still speaks.
“Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

The disciples needed to recognize that the One coming toward them was not another threat in the storm. It was Jesus. And perhaps that is what we need to remember as well.

You may not know when the circumstances will change. You may not know how the situation will unfold. But you can know who is with you.

So before you ask only, “When will this storm end?”

Ask:
“Am I listening for Jesus?”

Do not allow the storm to become so loud that you stop hearing His voice.

Don't just identify the storm, identify Jesus.