God Coming
“When he saw that they were straining at the oars against an adverse wind, he came towards them early in the morning, walking on the sea. 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.’ Then he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they do not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.” Mark 6:47-52
This has been my experience. God often comes to me in the early morning if I take time to get up and listen and read or just look or sit outside. God comes when he sees me “straining at the oars against an adverse wind.” God comes to me in some miracle, almost as if he were walking on water. It may be a word, a letter, an email, a call from someone I would least expect to hear God’s word. I “by chance” meet someone who was not on my agenda for the day. God may speak in the actual scripture reading. God may be the wind at my side, or the sun bringing light to the cold dawn, or the first bloom on a barren tree. I usually perceive God as a ghost and do not recognize the occurrence as a message from the one who cares so much for me. I may ignore it because it was not in my busy plan for the day. I may even cry out. I may be terrified by what I hear or see.
Talking to spiritual friends helps us see God in these places we were blind to God’s presence. I remember that somehow if I stay present to the moment and say my prayers, fear will leave me. Fear is afraid of prayer.
God literally gets into the boat where my life is sailing on, and the storm in my mind and in my body ceases. I am astonished. I do not realize why I am comforted, for my heart is still hardened. This happens daily. God does not give up on us and our hard hearts.
Joanna joannaseibert.com