Wednesday after Epiphany

When it was evening, the boat was far out on the sea and he was alone on shore. Then he saw that they were tossed about while rowing, for the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them. But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out. They had all seen him and were terrified. But at once he spoke with them, “Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid!”

When we are in the midst of a storm of trials, beset upon by sin and imperfection, and floundering in our faith, we should take courage and be not afraid because Jesus is always with us in our times of need. We think he has abandoned us, we might not sense his presence with us, or even be terrified of what is going on around us, but if we look for him, he will give us the graces we need to survive any storm and to calm our hearts. Sometimes we are cast about with sorrows, sufferings, and sins, but as long as we keep the faith and do not harden our hearts, we will eventually make it through our tribulations and find the peace of doing God’s Will on the other side. This is why we should never give up on God, no matter what is going on in our lives, because He will never give up on us. He loves us more than we can ever appreciate and has sacrificed more for us than we can ever repay.

Do we turn to God when we are beset by the storms of life? Do we let Jesus calm our hearts when they are in turmoil? Do we trust that God will always be with us, no matter what?

O Lord, grant us the courage to be not afraid.

Amen.