John 6:15-21 says,
15. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.
16.And when even was now come, his disciples went down unto the sea,
17. And entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.
18.And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.
19.So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid.
20.But he saith unto them, It is I; be not afraid.
21.Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.
Consider the unusual way Jesus appeared to His disciples in the account given in these verses.
The first thing to note is that Jesus had not come for several hours, but He didn’t abandon the disciples. He happened to come at a time when there was a dire need.
But it’s how He came that I want us to note. He didn’t come in a way they expected. And He didn’t come in a way that made Him recognizable to them. He came in an unconventional manner, and it made them afraid.
So it can be with God’s appearance to us in life’s stormy, dark times. Let me explain.
Christ won’t leave us unaided. He won’t abandon us. Of course, we may wish He would make His presence known sooner; but He will be there in a time of dire need.
He may make Himself known in unconventional ways we’re not expecting. We may not recognize His hand. In fact, like the disciples, we might even be afraid of Him and what He does.
Remember, the Scriptures tell us the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. So a little fear can be a good thing. It’s when our fear is misplaced that we run into problems.
With that in mind, let’s listen for our Lord’s calming voice and trust Him when he says, “It is I; be not afraid.”