Do You Know the Peace Speaker?

The winds came suddenly, whipping around them, causing waves to lash against and into the boat. The sea seemed to have come alive and was intent on destroying the boat and its occupants. Does that sound like a time in your life? A time when everything was going well and suddenly, without warning, a storm hit full force? A child is diagnosed with a deadly disease; a car wreck destroys your health and the life of another; you lose your job; the stock market crash takes away your retirement funds; a spouse of many years suddenly wants a divorce; a son or daughter is killed in battle in a foreign country. The storm rages around you. The winds seem to gather intensity, and your boat seems about to sink. Yet, you need not despair! There is Hope! There is Help!

The men in the boat on the

Sea of Galilee were seasoned fishermen and had dealt with storms on the sea before, yet this one was threatening to sink their boat. So, they did what we can do! They called on the One with the power to calm the winds and the waves. And, where was He? In the same place He still is – right there with them (and with us) – in the boat during the storm. He “rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace be still,’ and the wind ceased, and there was a great clam” (Mark 4:39). They found peace in the midst of the storm.

We have a friend who, at one time, flew airplanes into the eye of hurricanes to gather data to measure their strength. It was dangerous, yet he told us that at the very center of that destructive mass is the eye, which is usually totally clam. The calm is directly surrounded by the eyewall where the fastest wind speeds are found, but at the center is calmness. When we face storms, we, too, can find calmness and peace with Christ as our Center, for “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. So, we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!” In other words, when everything around us seems to be crumbling, we can say with confidence, “The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge!” (Psalm 46:1-3,11).

Geron Davis in his song “Peace Speaker” expresses it beautifully. “I know the Peace Speaker; I know Him by Name. He controls the wind and the waves. When He says, ‘Peace, be still,’ they have to obey. That’s why I never worry when storm clouds come my way. I know that He is near to drive away my fear, and I can smile and say, “I’m glad I know the Peace Speaker; yes, I know Him by Name.”

Do you know the Peace Speaker?