Why Are You So Fearful

Matthew 8:24-26 – “And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.”

There is not one of us who has not experienced fear in some form or another. For some, it may be the fear of failing, the fear of dying, or the fear of the unknown. For others, it might be the fear of losing employment, the fear of leaving home, or the fear of being rejected. The disciples were in the midst of a terrible storm in the sea, and fear had overtaken them.

When you think about it, just as storms are a part of life on the sea, storms are a part of life on the land. We all are going to face storms. This was a “great tempest” for the experienced sailors. That is the kind of storm that causes us to fear. We would not be afraid if there were no storms, and we would probably not fear if the storm were small and short-lived. When our trials are intense and we do not know how or when they will end, fear seeks to take hold of us.

When Jesus was awakened, He asked the question, “Why are ye fearful?” He did not ask IF they were afraid, but WHY they were afraid. We should personalize this question. Why are we sometimes so fearful?

Jesus said to these disciples, “O ye of little faith.” When fear fills our hearts, it must be that we are not relying on the Savior. He wants us, as children of God, to trust Him in the practical daily circumstances of life, but especially in our storms and trials. The disciples were convinced they were perishing. Fear has a way of multiplying itself. The more we think about a potential danger, the more severe it becomes to us. Very often when a trial passes, we are stricken that it was not nearly as tragic as we had imagined it to be. We are also fearful when we forget that we are not alone. Jesus is always with us. With the Master on board, surely, we can trust Him to see us through.