Take a Deep Breath

Whenever they are facing a new or difficult situation, I tell my children, “Stop. Take a deep breath. Relax.” We have survived many doctor visits and school situations with these words as our guide. I have often found these instructions helpful in my own stress-filled moments. We can all benefit from a moment of reassessment and peace, can’t we?

As Christians, I find it even more important on a deeper, spiritual level. Throughout the readings for the Twelfth Sunday of Ordinary Time, we heard a beautiful theme: God is the Creator and Controller of the wind and the waves.

Job was questioning God, and received a lengthy response, reminding Job of just how magnificent and almighty God truly is.The One who created the seas and their boundaries was the same One who was walking through Job’s trials with him.

The psalmist related the relationship of a sailor with the Lord, who by a command “raised up a storm wind,” and with another, “hushed the storm to a gentle breeze.”

In the Gospel reading from St. Mark, the disciples encountered a similar situation. While crossing the sea, a powerful storm arose. In their case, Jesus was physically in the boat at the time. Yet, at His word, “The wind ceased and there was great calm.”

It’s easy to see the connection between these three passages of Scripture. Now, what do we do with the New Testament reading from 2 Corinthians? It doesn’t really seem to fit, does it? Take a closer look, though. The Corinthians were struggling to understand the incongruence of being set free from sin, yet living in a world filled with constant battles and difficulties. Paul was reminding them that, though their flesh would suffer in this world, they would one day be in the presence of the Lord. If they were in Christ, they were a new creation, being made ready for something eternal. The trials of this life were to be seen as a temporary situation. They could know God’s peace in the midst of all the hardships, “for we walk by faith, not by sight.” They were not to live their lives as those without hope: “And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.”

There’s the connection! In the thick of this world’s chaos, Christ came to bring true peace. This life is not about the storms, but about the Creator and Controller of the wind and waves. Let His words, “Quiet! Be at peace!” be your reminder to stop, take a breath, and relax. He is in your boat.