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“Suddenly a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but Jesus was asleep. The disciples woke him, saying, ‘Lord, save us! We are perishing!’ … Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm” (Matthew 8: 23-27).
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We’ve all cried out to God in distress like the disciples in today’s Gospel. And more often than not it seems like Jesus is asleep. But we must remember that our cries always awaken him.
In that sense, I’d say our prayer lives can be likened to a stoplight.
Sometimes we ask for something and it’s granted immediately. For example, we lose our keys… pray to Saint Anthony… and “poof!” there they are.
A green light.
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Most often, however, we live our lives in the yellow.
We’ve all spent some days or nights on our knees, tears flowing down our cheeks, begging God for help. Anyone who’s followed the Lord long enough knows that most of these prayers are answered.
It just takes a good amount of patience.
After all, that tension of praying for something – and hoping it will be granted – is where most of our spiritual growth happens.
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Then there’s the red light.
These are prayers that are simply not answered the way we had hoped. For example, I prayed for many nights that my mother would be cured from cancer. “She’s dying, Lord! Save her!”
I cried out.
A red light.
But even when the red lights come, we must remember the words of Saint Paul:
“All things (even red lights) work for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).