There are times in our lives when we feel like a tiny boat in a massive ocean, blown by the strong winds and tossed along rough waters, that it seems improbable that we would make it in one piece ashore.
Was there a time during those events that you felt God’s presence? Maybe you “heard” a gentle voice, experienced a brief moment of calm, or encountered a friend who suddenly called to ask how you are doing.
While the disciples were feeling tired and down because they thought that Jesus had not risen, there He stood in their midst and greeted them, “Peace be with you,” and He said to them: “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts?”
Their terror and loss for words made them conclude they were seeing a ghost. So Jesus reassures them that “a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you can see I have.”
He then does a simple act of eating baked fish to manifest that He has, indeed, risen from the dead. Most important, Jesus appeared to his followers once again to tell them that He has truly risen, and that He is there for them.
Who moves us and inspires us to go on with life when everything seems in shambles? Whether we admit it or not, sometimes we feel doubt like the disciples did. We feel abandoned, left out it the cold, alone with thoughts of despair.
Go no further in these futile doubts and shift your belief that God is the only one who can move us when we earnestly pray to ask for help and strength as we forge ahead the multitude of trials in our life.
It is inevitable to have painful and stressful experiences. We have all traversed our own stormy seas, and some of you may still be in the middle of it with no shore in sight.
Do not despair, and take into heart what Jesus said, “Do not be afraid.”
These are the times when we need Jesus the most. However, it is rare for us to literally hear those words, but He will come, and He will speak to us.
Focus, pay attention and be alert. Most likely, God will come at a time and in a way we do not expect. Our unwavering faith will bring us “home to safe shores” because, in essence, it is God who helps us, strengthens us and stays by our side as we go through our trials and problems.