“…but when they saw Him walking on the lake, they thought He was a ghost. They cried out, because they all saw Him and were terrified. Immediately He spoke to them and said, ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’” Mark 6:49-50 (NIV)

Terrified

Part One

I can attest to several times in my life when I was truly terrified. One time comes to mind in particular. My husband and I were on vacation in a strange, faraway city. True to form, my husband wanted an adventure, so we boarded the bus that came to the corner we were standing on, not knowing where it would take us. We enjoyed the ride well enough, watching the tall skyscrapers eventually give way to small city neighborhoods that could more properly be called ghettos. Signs in a foreign language appeared in storefronts. The streets narrowed. Cars disappeared. Graffiti covered the buildings. Knots of laughing people hung around street corners. We suddenly realized it had gotten quite dark.

I politely (at least that’s how I remember it) suggested we find a different bus that might be heading back where we came from, because this bus clearly was taking us far away. My dear husband believed all buses eventually go back the way they came, and we should stay put on this bus. We were, by now, the only people on the bus.

Finally, the bus stopped. The driver turned and looked at us and said, “Everyone off. This is the end of the line.” My heart hammered and I looked with proper terror at my husband. I was not happy with him. I was not happy with this adventure. We asked if there was another bus coming; the answer was no. We asked the driver for directions (this was long before cell phones), and he pointed up that dark street, and told us to go this way, then that way. We got off the bus; I was stuck to my husband as if super glued, trying to be invisible.

My head hammered with the fear of what could, and surely would, happen to us. My earlier dinner begged to re-enter the world. I wanted to run with everything in me, but my husband thought it best to walk confidently, as if we knew where we were going—as if we did this every day—past all those knots of people. I silently begged him to move faster, while pleading with God for protection. I held my breath as we passed the locked-up doors of storefronts with bars on every window.

We did eventually (and safely) get back to our hotel, but it was a long time before my nerves returned to normal. I wish I knew then what I know now. I will share it with you tomorrow. Maybe you’ve experienced this kind of terror—the terror of what is happening, or what could happen. This must have been how the disciples felt in the boat on the water, in the darkness of a storm.

“Father, You have been our Protector since our birth. We have Your sure Word that You love us and that You are good, so teach us to trust and not fear. Amen.”