23 When Jesus got into a boat, his disciples followed him. 24 Behold, a violent storm came up on the sea, so much that the boat was covered with the waves, but he was asleep. 25 They came to him, and woke him up, saying, “Save us, Lord! We are dying!”

26 He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.

27 The men marveled, saying, “What kind of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Matthew 8:23-27 - World English Bible

This scene picked up from Matthew 8:18 when Jesus ordered his disciples to depart to the other side of the lake. In the journey, he fell asleep and a wind storm that periodically blows over the Sea of Galilee whipped the fishing boat out of control. The disciples panicked and woke the Lord, only to be chided by him for their lack of faith. With his mere word, he calmed the sea and caused marvel among those in the boat.

The early Church treasured stories like this, for it read them allegorically. The boat represented the Church; the storm symbolized persecution; under these conditions, everyone panicked. Then, Jesus would "awake" and calm would return to the community, as the persecution receded. In response, faith would grow.

Like the disciples in the boat, we, too, experience times of trial where we might be tempted to panic. The moral of the story is perseverance. Hold on; Jesus will soon "calm the waters."

When was the last time you felt like a disciple in the boat? What was the last storm you survived? How did Jesus calm the waters of your crisis?