The Other Little Boats

"On the same day, when evening had come, Jesus said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side.' Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, 'Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?' Then He arose and said to the sea, 'Peace, be still!' And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, 'Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith!'"
(Mark 4:35-40)

Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side."

Most of us are familiar with this passage of scripture. Remember? A storm comes up and threatens to capsize their boat. The disciples become frightened, wake up Jesus, and He calms the storm. He is frustrated by their lack of faith, but nonetheless, He rescues them by His mighty power.

Great story, right? Yes, but look what I discovered.

Verse 36 says, "...And other little boats were also with Him."

"...other little boats..." Oh my goodness!

Other people left the shore with Jesus, skimming along the water parallel to Him. They, too, wanted to go to the other side.

But, Jesus wasn't in their boat.

They were on the periphery, watching from a distance - curious, but not committed enough to get in the boat with Him as one of the disciples.

What a shame! And what happened to the "other little boats" during the storm? Did they capsize? Did they turn back? The scripture doesn't say, but they are not mentioned again. When Jesus reached the other side and began performing miracles, nothing is said about the "other little boats" and the people inside.

Think what they missed by not being in the boat with Jesus. They couldn't hear Him command the storm to cease. If, in fact, they survived the storm, these people had no idea what had stopped it.

They missed the power of God.

I don't want to ever be accused of staying on the periphery. I want to be in the boat with Him - hook, line and sinker!! Living my life running parallel alongside Jesus is not going to cut it.

I want to be the one to wake Him up when the wind and the rain try to capsize our boat.

Lord, I absolutely love it when You show me something new in Your word. How have I missed the lesson of the "other little boats" all these years? Heaven forbid that I should ever be on the outside looking in when it comes to loving You. I want to be near You, Lord. I want You to consider me Your friend like the Father considers Abraham. Lord, I want to be close enough to You to see Your power and to hear Your voice. Thank You for making that possible. You are wonderful beyond measure.