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Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out, for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. (Mark 6:45-51 ESV)

Did you notice how this narrative begins? Jesus puts his followers on a boat and sends them into waters on a voyage that he knows is going to be contrary. They are left to experience navigational difficulties without him. Yet, he is not far off. He sees the danger and ultimately rescues his people.

But not without difficulty! As he approaches the boat, they thought that they had gone from rough waters and high winds to some spooky movie! Jesus, whom they thought was some eerie specter, was going to pass them by. Then he heard their screams of terror. He changed course, entered the boat, and all was well: they recognize him and the storm immediately stops. 

Friend, you are where God wants you. You may look to your right and left and see chaos. You may look behind and see a wasted life. You may look ahead and see no future or hope. But you are right where God wants you. It is a place we call: In need. 

You need him. Jesus knows you need him and he is waiting for you to cry out. Maybe you cry out in terror. Maybe in frustration. Maybe in pain or anger. But cry out to God. He is not far off. He will come to you and get in the boat with you. Two things are guaranteed to happen.

(1) You will know who he is. He has revealed himself in the words of the Bible. 

“The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:8-9)

(2) He will be in the boat with you. Your problems may not dissipate like the storm in Mark chapter 6, but the King of Creation will be in your boat with you! There will be a change, do not doubt that. That change will not necessarily be in the things exterior to your heart, it will be a change within your heart. Your past will still be your past - though your sins be forgiven before God. The difficult people in your life will still be difficult people. The path forward may still look steep and rocky. But with Jesus in your boat, you will reach the far shore. And there, you will find peace evermore. 

Do not reduce God to a genie-in-a-bottle who exists only to give you whatever your heart desires. Do not think that he is so small that he creates everything in the world to fit your particular worldview. He is enormously larger and more majestic and good than you could ever think or imagine! Yet, he is intimately concerned with so much that he sees you riding the storms in your boat. He is ultimately interested in your heart. He longs for repentence, belief, trust, and faith. In exchage, he gives you new life and a heart that reflects courage instead of cowardice, love instead of pride, thankfulness in place of selfishness, and submission in place of fighting. 

He is Immanuel, God with you.

There is a book entitled Immanuel: The Story of Jesus the God With Us, written by Paul David Tripp and illustrated by Robert Doares. This article contains the insight of "PDT" in that book and bears one of those illustrations (above). The book is available by clicking --> here <--

The art of happiness through thankfulness is a main theme of this book by Dennis Prager entitled Happiness is a Serious Problem.