Can You Weather The Storm?
Updated: Oct 13
10/12/2026
Elijah McSwain, Sr.
Mark 4:35-41 NKJV — On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”
Storms are an inevitable part of life. Naturally, storms arise when certain conditions occur in the Earth’s weather system. When warm, moist air rises and interacts with cooler air, it can produce a disturbance in the normal pattern of the Earth’s atmosphere. Spiritually speaking, storms manifest as trials and tribulations. As humans, we undergo vicious cycles in life, experiencing affliction, suffering, distress, trouble, crisis, adversity, grief, heartache, misery, pain, and opposition. Everyone faces unfavorable circumstances in life, known as storms. Job 14:1 (NKJV) proclaims, “Man who is born of woman Is of few days and full of trouble.” Trouble comes to the great, the small, the mighty, the lowly, the rich, the poor, the seemingly significant, and the seemingly insignificant. Trouble shows no partiality. It is not biased. It encounters everyone. It is unheard of to go through life without facing some kind of calamity, sorrow, and anguish. No individual is exempt from experiencing life’s woes, not even Christians. Notice that Jesus’ disciples were not exempt from the storms of life. In the text, Jesus’ disciples are caught in a ferocious windstorm on the Sea of Galilee. Nature’s elements were at work. The waves beat into the boat. The wind blew forcefully. It was a turbulent storm of intensified weather conditions that caused the disciples to be afraid. Like the disciples, there are times in our lives when stormy situations arise, and these situations are unavoidable.
Life is comprised of turbulent climatic shifts. When the storms of life arise, how do we respond? Do we exhibit faith or fear? In the midst of life’s trials, our emotional impulse might urge us to become fearful, weak, uncertain, and doubtful, causing our faith to waver. When the storms of life begin to rage, “Can you weather the storm?” A young man applied for a job as a farmhand. When asked for his qualifications, he told the farmer about his previous experience, then said, “I can sleep when the wind blows.” This puzzled the farmer, but he took a liking to the young man and hired him. A few months later, the farmer was awakened in the night by a violent storm. The farmer frantically ran outside to make sure that everything was secured. He found the barn doors tightly shut. He found the shutters closed. He found the storage shed and machinery properly secured. That was when the farmer realized the significance of the statement, “I can sleep when the wind blows.” 1 I wonder if we are able to be at ease and find peace when the wind blows and the sea is raging in life? Much like the disciples, storms can shift our focus, suppress our faith, and make us wonder where Jesus is in our hour of need.
Too often, we operate from the seat of faithlessness and doubt when storms appear in our lives. During these moments, we act as unbelieving believers within the Christian faith. This is an oxymoron because the Christian journey is a life that is ordained and decreed by faith.
Romans 1:17 (NKJV) declares, “The just shall live by faith.” However, we give our storms more power than we give to God. Stormy situations test our true character and our faith. Storms reveal what is manifested on the inside. Either we will display inner peace by trusting in God, or we will exhibit tumultuous activity due to a lack of faith. In order to weather the storms of life, let’s take into account the providence of Jesus, the presence of Jesus, and the peace that Jesus gives.
The Providence of Jesus
Mark 4 sets the scene with Jesus teaching by the sea, and a great multitude gathered near Him (v. 1). During His discourse, Jesus got into a boat and sat in it on the sea (v. 1). He taught the crowd many parables while seated in the vessel (vv. 2-34). After spending a great part of the day teaching parables, Jesus said to His disciples on the same day, “Let us cross over to the other side” (v. 35). As they left the multitude, they, along with other boats, sojourned to the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee to escape the crowd for a brief respite. As they made their way across the sea, a great windstorm arose. The fierce waves beat against the ship, filling it with water. The catastrophic conditions of being on this particular sea became unpleasant and could have capsized or overturned the boat. Historically, this sea was about 690 feet below sea level and was surrounded by hills. The natural condition on the Sea of Galilee involved frequent bursts of wind. John MacArthur noted that the windstorm had a whirlwind-like effect. “In this case, it was a storm so severe that it took on the properties of a hurricane.” 2 Hurricanes are violent storms that cause extensive damage, so we can imagine the disciples’ dilemma. Matthew 8:24 (NKJV) records the same event involving Jesus and His disciples on the sea. The verse states, “And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves.” Tempest implies great commotion in the air that also affected the sea. Facing the conditions of the raging windstorm with hurricane-like properties and being rocked back and forth by the boisterous waves, any person would be likely to feel uneasy.
But we must notice a pivotal point in this account. Jesus is the One who initiated the disciples’ passage across to the other side. Before the storm began, Jesus providentially declared that their destination was to go to the other side.
He had already pinpointed the route of their journey. If Jesus initiated the passage to the other side, His disciples should have realized that His providential care would sustain them in the midst of the storm. The disciples encountered the storm after following His direction.
Thus, at Jesus’ direction, they should have been assured of His guidance. His providence is the fundamental means by which He guides, cares for, and governs us, directing all things in life. Divine providence affirms that the Lord is in complete control of all things. He possesses sovereign authority over the created world.
Surely, if He created the sphere of the universe, He is sovereign over what He created.
He controls what He has brought into existence. John 1:1-3 (NKJV) reminds us of Jesus’ creative power. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” Colossians 1:15-17 (ESV) reminds us of His sustaining and providential power. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Jesus created and sustains all things; therefore, even the wind and waves operate under His sovereign authority and within the boundaries He has established. Christ firmly holds all creation together. He providentially sustains the universe. He preserves and maintains the flow of things for life to exist and endure. At Creation, if the Lord put the gust in the wind, divided the waters under the firmament and above the firmament, and gathered the waters under the firmament in one place so that dry land appeared, called Earth, and the gathered water, called the seas, then surely, He was sovereignly in control of the Sea of Galilee. This also assures us that the Lord providentially governs every aspect of our lives. Nothing we encounter is outside His sovereign rule and authority. Every circumstantial situation we experience is under His control and administered by His providential administration. We may have never experienced a physical storm on a boat in the midst of the sea. However, we do experience turbulence on the sea of life.
Brian Bell asserted this about the account in Mark 4:35-41. He said, “The journey of this boat is a picture of the journey of life.” 3
Life is filled with intense moments that are rocky, rough, gusty, and stormy. The conditions we face may make it seem as if we are about to capsize and be thrown overboard to be destroyed in the sea of life. Capsize is a way of figuratively expressing the difficulties of life caused by unexpected situations and the general troubles that come with living in a fallen world, which appear to overtake us. Overwhelming moments have hurricane-like intensity that can feel unbearable. It can rock us in unimaginable ways due to certain climatic conditions in our lives. What climatic condition or storm is raging in your life? What is causing you to feel like your vessel on the sea of life is about to capsize? Is your storm a financial burden, deteriorating health, a broken marriage, a faulty relationship, the loss of a loved one, mental anguish, loneliness, sorrow, being scandalized, being outcast, losing a job, dealing with wayward children, failures and disappointments, or spiritual attacks? Are these things causing the waves to crash into your boat and fill it as if you are going to sink and drown? Have life’s troubles diminished and shifted your focus on God’s providence?
The disciples focused on being caught in the storm and forgot about Jesus’ providence over their lives. At times in life, we tend to focus on our situations rather than on the One who can handle any situation.
This distortion of vision causes us to lose sight of God’s power and His care for us.
But be reminded that His providential hand can bring resolution to the calamity you are currently facing. No matter the darkness of the clouds, the force of the wind, or the crashing waves, Jesus, by His providence, can navigate you through life’s storms.
In fact, the Greatest Meteorologist, Jesus, knows that stormy situations don’t last always.
The songwriter wrote, “I am so glad that trouble don’t last always.” No matter how great the storm, I have never seen a storm that did not pass over. As disciples of Christ, we can rely on His power to change the circumstantial reality of our storms. In our moments of weakness, we can find strength in His care to carry us through the storm. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 (NKJV) emphasizes “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me……For when I am weak, then am I strong.” Strength lies in the providential hand of God. The more vicious the storm, the more God’s providence is revealed to uphold us. The more vicious the storm, the more His strength is imparted to stabilize us. If the Lord initiated your life’s journey, He will see you through every step of the journey.
Remember Jesus’ Presence
Verse thirty-eight informs the reader that while the storm was raging, Jesus was asleep in the stern of the boat on a pillow. One may ask: Why did Jesus seem unbothered by the conditions of the storm? First, what seems troublesome to us is not troublesome to Jesus. Again, He controls all the elements of creation and life. Jesus is unbothered by what bothers us because He is in complete control of every situation. Don’t get me wrong. Jesus cares about what we go through in life and the storms we face. 1 Peter 5:7 (NKJV) is a constant reminder of this, “casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” He cares about what ails us in the form of trials, tribulations, burdens, heartaches, sorrow, things that challenge us, and so forth. What I mean by Jesus being unbothered is that He is not affected in the same way we are. He has supreme authority to quiet the elements of nature in any storm. When the crisis emerged, the disciples initially focused on the brewing storm, but they remembered Jesus’ presence on the boat with them. The disciples took their eyes off the storm and fixed them on Jesus. They saw Jesus asleep in the stern of the ship, which is the back or rear part of the ship. The disciples were puzzled and pondered how Jesus could be asleep in such a catastrophic situation. Jesus was sound asleep on the boat because of His trust in God, His Father. The disciples should have remained calm because of their trust in Jesus and the reality of His presence.
Jesus is resting from exhaustion after healing and teaching the multitude, as recorded earlier in this chapter. While He is resting, the disciples are in panic mode during the storm.
Thus their panic is evident in the latter part of verse thirty-eight, when they woke Jesus up and said “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” The disciples concluded that the storm would destroy them.
The disciples’ theology was briefly warped by their fear.
The disciples feared the storm’s conditions and felt a sense of abandonment as Jesus slept through the storm. Jesus’ silence felt like abandonment to the disciples. It seemed as if Jesus was unconcerned and indifferent to their calamity. Yet, Jesus was there all along in the midst of the crisis that emerged. The silence of Jesus did not mean that He was absent.
We must understand that Jesus’ silence should never be interpreted as His absence.
Pastor Markiet Lewis said in a recent sermon, “Your surroundings do not determine God’s presence.” 4
The disciples never faced the storm without Him. He was present in the storm the entire time. Even though Jesus seemed silent in the midst of the storm, the disciples had enough sense to go to Jesus. Jesus’ presence on the vessel is profoundly important. His calming presence would reassure the disciples of His authority after their conversation with Him. The songwriter posed this sentiment, “Just a little talk with Jesus makes everything alright.” His presence eventually transformed the dynamics of the situation because His authority superseded the chaos. Similarly, Jesus’ presence in your moments of struggle and adversity assures you that He is with you. Even when deliverance feels like a distant reality because Jesus may seem silent, He is with us. Remember that Jesus has not forsaken us. The Hebrew writer reminds us in Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) of profound words penned: “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:8 (NKJV) adds, “And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.” It has been stated, “Jesus never promised we would avoid life’s storms; rather, He promised to be with us in them and never leave His children alone in trouble.” 5 Realizing Jesus’ presence should reassure us that we don’t have to face adverse situations alone. When our trust is anchored in Jesus, we have the awareness of His presence. If we fail to be conscious of His presence, then the words of this song ring true,
“There’s a storm out on the ocean
And it’s moving this way
If your soul’s not anchored in Jesus
You will surely drift away.”
Make sure that you are anchored in Jesus so that you are consciously aware that He is presently with you, sovereignly governs you, and is attentive to your cry. Like the disciples, when the storms of life are raging, cry out to the Lord. He will help us weather the storm. One of life’s greatest comforts is not knowing when the storm will end, but having the assurance of who is in the boat with us on the rocky sea of life. Thomas Dorsey penned it this way:
“Like a ship that is tossed and driven,
Battered by the angry sea,
When the storms of life are raging
And their fury falls on me,
I wonder what I have done that make this race so hard to run,
Then I say to myself take courage,
The Lord will make a way somehow.” 7
The Peace That Jesus Gives
Peace is something everyone longs for. Humanity desires the absence of trouble. The world defines peace as calmness, tranquility, and contentment that result from everything going well. Worldly peace is contingent on favorable circumstances. Biblical peace is a state of mind characterized by ease and solace, regardless of the circumstances. Biblical peace is a deep, settled confidence in God that all is well because He is sovereign and in control of our lives. Biblical peace is independent of a person’s circumstances. It is rooted in the fact that, regardless of favorable or unfavorable situations, peace is found in God alone. Peace is knowing that God is our fortress, security, shield, and buckler amid life’s storms. The Gospel of Mark reveals that the disciples are in the midst of a violent windstorm. The nature of the storm has shaken the disciples.
Terror in the storm revealed the fragility of the disciples’ faith.
Verse forty captures Jesus responding to the disciples’ mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual states, both internally and externally. He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” The storm fueled their fears and shook their faith. The surrounding chaos of the sea’s elements diminished their faith. They became faithless. Jesus said, “How is it that you have no faith?” Their fear suppressed their faith. Fear of situational realities often causes people to unravel spiritually and to operate from the seat of faithlessness and fear. Sometimes the elements of life’s storms make even our faith inadequate.
Faith and fear cannot coexist in the life of believers.
Either we will trust God in the storms of life or allow fear to make us doubt. J.W. McGarvey mentioned that, with Jesus in the vessel, it argued the weakness of their faith. The disciples had just witnessed the many miracles which He had performed, and this should have convinced them that He had power over the winds and the waves. 8 Their past experiences with Jesus should have strengthened their faith in Him. However, they allowed their present reality to diminish their acquired knowledge of Him through experience and divine revelation. Their present faithless state crippled their theology and their understanding of God. Fear results in a weak faith that doubts God’s power. Operating from fear and a lack of faith robs us of God’s peace. In the preceding verse, before Jesus questioned their faith after they woke Him up, He “rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace be still!”
The elements of creation obeyed the Creator’s voice.
“Peace be still” is a command. The Lord is sovereign over the elements He created. He set the boundaries, limits, and bars for the sea, while giving the proud waves instructions on where to stop (Job 38:8-11). Surely, the elements for which He has set boundaries, limits, and bars are subject to His command. Psalm 65:7 (NKJV) declares this of God, “You who still the noise of the seas, The noise of their waves, And the tumult of the peoples.” When chaotic crises arise in your life, Jesus can speak a word of peace to calm the raging storm.
Jesus specializes in calming storms. He can speak peace into your stormy situation. The Lord has power to speak peace over your broken marriage, broken relationships, financial difficulties, job dilemmas, unruly children, physical ailments and health concerns, mental anguish, grief, despair, hardships, letdowns, and any other stormy situation that you find yourself in. Jesus can speak peace into our boisterous predicaments. After all, He is the Source of Peace! Isaiah 9:6 prophesied that He would be the Prince of Peace. 2 Thessalonians 3:16 calls Him the Lord of peace. The Lord grants perfect peace to those “whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3). Psalm 107:23-32 (NKJV) proclaims, “Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters, They see the works of the LORD, And His wonders in the deep. For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, So that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!” The hymnologist penned a song:
“Master, the tempest is raging! The billows are tossing high!
The sky is overshadowed 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 threatening
The winds and the waves shall obey Thy will.
Peace, be still! Peace, be still! N
o water can swallow the ship where lies the Master of ocean, earth and skies;
They all shall sweetly obey Thy will!
Peace! Peace! be still!
Like the disciples, we can marvel at the Person of Jesus to be reminded, “Who can this be that even the wind and sea obey Him!” William MacDonald noted, “Even though they knew who Jesus was, they were impressed afresh by the power of the One who could control the elements.” 10 May we forever stand in awe of the Lord’s calming presence in the midst of our storms.
Notes
https://ministry127.com/resources/illustration/sleeping-when-the-wind-blows
The MacArthur Study Bible
Sermon by Pastor Markiet Lewis, Can These Bones Live? Ezekiel 37:1-3.
Got Questions Ministries, Got Questions? Bible Questions Answered (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2002–2013).
Song. There’s A Storm Out On The Ocean
Hymn 2516. The Lord Will Make A Way Somehow. The New National Baptist Hymnal. 1977. Triad Publications.
McGarvey, J. W. 1875. The New Testament Commentary: Matthew and Mark. Vol. I. Delight, AR: Gospel Light Publishing Company.
Hymn 516. Peace! Be Still. The New National Baptist Hymnal. 1977. Triad Publications.
The Believer’s Bible Commentary
