The Calm in the Storm ...

John 20:19 – 22 (NLT) That Sunday evening the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! "Peace be with you," he said. As he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and his side. They were filled with joy when they saw the Lord! Again he said, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you." Then he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.”

What a week! This week has been one of ultimate joy and great tragedy. From the storms that rocked the southeast on Wednesday night to the joy of the Royal Wedding on Friday morning and a real down-home Campmeeting style wedding on Saturday, this week has been an emotional rollercoaster! Who would have believed that on Wednesday, the storms would roll through Alabama and Georgia, tearing up towns and leaving devastation in their wake? Wednesday night was much like any other night, except for the reports that the storms were coming. We’ve had storms before, but these had already devastated areas across the South, and they were headed for Georgia. At about 11:30 p.m., the wind began to howl, and the lightning began to flash as the clouds reached us. I phoned a neighbor to see if they wanted to seek refuge with us in our basement. At first, they said they would be okay. Then, just minutes later, they phoned back and headed to our house for safety, not knowing what the ensuing tornadoes would bring. We rolled out sleeping bags for the kids and settled in to the basement. We were huddled together for safety and out of fear.

I wonder if that’s what the disciples must have felt like on that first Resurrection night. What a day it had been! News ran rampant that Jesus had risen from the dead, but they weren’t sure they could believe it. They huddled together in the upper room, and the scripture says they closed their doors out of fear of the Jewish religious authorities. What if the news had traveled that the body of Jesus was missing? Then the Jewish authorities would be after them to arrest them for trying to trick people into thinking that Jesus was alive – resurrected – risen from the dead. Their hearts were worried that the next sound that they might hear would hear would be the sound of soldiers coming to round them up for the same excruciating and humiliating death that Jesus had suffered. Hadn’t the last few days been enough? Maybe they were fearful about what they would do next. Would they return to their jobs as fishermen and tax collectors? Three years of following Jesus had ended abruptly, with no visible plan for the future. Maybe they were disillusioned, disappointed, or discouraged. I can imagine that some of them were thinking, “Is this really true? Is Jesus really alive? I can’t believe it. What proof do we have?”

Then all of a sudden, a hush fell over the room - a calmness unlike they had known since that dreadful Thursday evening when their hope had been destroyed and their world had been ripped apart with the arrest of their friend, Jesus. “Peace be with you,” the voice came, and even with the doors locked, they beheld in their company the resurrected Lord! Jesus had heard the cries of their fearful hearts and had come to give them what they needed most – Peace. Again, he spoke the calming words to them: “Peace be with you.” Then, Jesus breathed on them and gave them the Spirit of comfort – the Holy Spirit. – Not in a Pentecost Sunday, house-rocking kind of way, but in a healing kind of way, as a helper to heal their hurting hearts and bring them comfort in their souls.

What fears do you have today? Fear of medical test reports? Fear of rocky relationships? Fear of job insecurity? Fear of loneliness? We all fear something. For some of us, it’s not being able to provide adequately for our families in this economy. It may not be so much fear as disillusionment, disappointment or even grief at a loss. Where do you need Christ to breathe the Comforting Spirit into your life? Will you hear the voice of our Resurrected Lord speak into your heart today those same words that calmed his disciples: “Peace be with you.”