Hold us in quiet through the age long minute, while though art silent and the wind is shrill, Can the boat sink while thou art in it, can the heart faint, that waiteth on thy will?

Amy Carmichael — excerpt from Towards Jerusalem

Have you ever lived through an age long minute?  Do you find yourself seeking the Lord daily in prayer and His Word but He seems to be silent?  Are you in the midst of a storm and you are afraid that the boat may sink and all your hopes and dreams with it?

The truth is, we all go through age long minutes that seem like they will never end.  And the enemy of our souls would like us to think that God has forsaken us, that He has misplaced us or that He has neglected to care for us in this storm.  That is the first lie I am prone to believe anyway.  And if I believe the lie, then I am likely to try and take matters into my own hand.  The result is never God’s best for me.  Just my own version of  what I need.

The beginning of the poem quoted above says this:

Thou art the Lord who slept upon the pillow.  Thou art the Lord who calmed the furious sea, what matter beating wind and tossing billow if only we are in the boat with thee?

See, the disciples were in a boat with Jesus, too.  They were in a storm and Jesus was, quite frankly asleep.  They cried out, “Lord – don’t you care that we are dying?”  He awoke, and with an authority that only He has said, “Peace be still” – to the wind and the waves and immediately the storm was silent.  I think in that moment He was also telling the disciples that no matter what they ‘heard’ from Him that His presence alone speaks volumes.  I am here with you.  I will never forsake you.  I will never leave you.  Just being with me is enough.

I am so grateful to know that the boat will  not sink, because He is in it, too.