TUESDAY OF THE THIRTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
"Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?" (Matthew 8:26)
Ah yes, the storm comes, the boat rocks, and we cry out to the Lord. If 2020 was a boat . . .
There is plenty of reason to cry out to the Lord these days. A pandemic that not only threatens our health but our financial security as well. Riots and unrest threaten cities. Peace protesters attacked while praying. In my life, I can't remember a more distressing time in our country.
No one would blame you for crying out, "Lord, save us!" (Matthew 8:25) But do we call out to the Lord in faith or fear? Do we trust that the Lord will get us through whatever hardships we are facing? Do we turn to Him with confidence that everything is part of His divine plan for our salvation? Or do we call out in fear that He has fallen asleep and is oblivious to our worries?
O you of little faith.
In yesterday's reading, The Lord sends an angel to rescue Peter. Did we see Peter cowering in the corner of his cell, fearful of what fate awaited him? No, Peter was sleeping when the angel came to his rescue. Peter wasn't afraid at that time because he knew that the Lord was with him.
If we are ever to question whether He loves us, we only need to look to the cross—his life given for us. When we turn to Christ with complete trust in Him, we are uniting our suffering and sorrows to the cross. When we say, Lord, save us, it should not be out of fear but with the faith that he is with us in our suffering and will get us through this storm and every storm. Faith casts out fear.