Recently, I did an interview for West-Central Pennsylvania’s Fox 8 News Now. The central question the host wanted me to address was “as people of faith, what do we do with all this anxiety?” It was and is a valid question. There is so much noise right now. Every time we turn on the news, meet up with family or friends, read the paper or online articles, all we hear is noise. In responding to the interview host’s inquiry, my initial step was to define the terms for the interview. Briefly, when we say anxiety, what do we mean by that? When I talk about anxiety or “noise,” – I am referring to the emotional response to an inability to control or predict a future action. We get anxious when we have an expectation for something that is out of our reach or control. Anxiety has various technical and medical definitions. There are also various kinds of anxiety. But what we are really dealing with is – an issue of control.
In Mark, Chapter 4, the disciples struggle with control. It is an incredible moment. They are on a ship, amid a storm, desperate to save themselves and salvage the ship while Jesus sleeps in the stern of the boat. These men wanted peace, they expected it, and had anticipated a smooth sailing. In fact, one could argue that they felt entitled to calm seas and a smooth sailing because Jesus was on their boat. Suddenly there is…a storm out of their control! In that moment, overwhelmed by anxiety and the “noise” surrounding them, they woke Jesus up to ask, “do you care if we perish.” The disciples consumed by their need to control the situation disturbed Jesus. I love this text because Jesus does not even address them, instead he goes to the head of the boat, peaks into the storm and commands, “peace be still.”
When the Fox 8 interviewer asked me what faith leaders do when we experience anxiety, my response to her was that “we should speak to it”. Jesus told peace to be still. He told peace to stop moving, to slow down, to show itself. That means that peace was already present, peace was there whirling around in the storm, intermingling with the wind, and riding the waves. Peace was present, but the disciples could not see it. They were trying to control the storm. Jesus did not try to control the storm, Jesus spoke to peace, and peace stopped and stood still, and when peace stood still, the storm ceased.
So, what do we do? Do not let the “noise” distract you! Do not let the need to control the outcome consume you! Instead, be intentional about listening and looking for peace, speaking peace and demanding that peace be present during whatever storms we encounter. If we do that as faith leaders, we will see so many storms cease and find relief for the anxiety we carry. This week may peace be still with you!
Dr. Ron Bell
