The Waves and Wind Still Know His Name

I don't normally write about how songs impact my life, but I felt I needed to share this one with you. It Is Well by Bethel Music. The readings for this Sunday all speak about the power of God / Jesus, and the common theme that I took away from the readings was Trust. This song fit the readings for this Sunday so perfectly that I felt called to share it.

The first reading is from Job 38:1, 8-11.In this reading we see God having a real conversation with Job, a conversation that reminds Job of who God is. God is hitting Job over the head at this point, which sometimes needs to happen in our own lives and faith journeys.  He tells Job “When I set limits for it and fastened the bar of its door, and said: Thus far shall you come but no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stilled” God tells Job I can tell the waves to be still and they will listen, this is the amount of power I have.  

The Responsorial Psalm is Psalm 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31.“They cried to the LORD in their distress; from their straits he rescued them, He hushed the storm to a gentle breeze, and the billows of the sea were stilled”. Psalm (107: 28-29). This Psalm beautifully foreshadows the Gospel of Mark 4:35 -41, the well-known Gospel story where disciples were on the boat, and a huge storm hits and Jesus is, well, asleep.  

Now, I laugh every time I read this or hear this at Mass. Just imagine you are there with the disciples, the huge storm is raging over you and water is filling up the boat. I imagine it is Peter who is the one chosen to wake up Jesus. Out of their lack of faith, they make Peter wake Jesus up. Well the rest of the story is; Jesus calms the storm and the sea leaving the disciples amazed. They are amazed because they know the Old Testament. They know about the story of Job and the imagery presented in the Psalms. They know this is the Son of the One who spoke to Job about the waves being still and the One who hushed the storm to a gentle breeze in the Psalms. Now they know it’s the Messiah as they acclaim, “Who then is this whom even wind and sea obey?”

Back to the song. I was introduced to the song a couple weeks ago at the Catholic Youth Ministers Conference. At first, it didn’t really speak to me. Not until I was leading our young adult Bible study. Then it really was the power of the Holy Spirit, as I was in mid-sentence explaining the Gospel, a spark of light came on and I thought of the lyrics, “Grand earth has quaked before moved by the sound of His voice Seas that are shaken and stirred Can be calmed and broken for my regard ... So let go my soul and trust in Him The waves and wind still know His name."

In the gospel story Jesus asks His disciples two questions; "Why are you afraid?" "Do you still not have faith?" If the disciples doubted Jesus, do you think we are free from this doubt too? No, we struggle with doubt; we have enormous questions about our lives and faith, do we not? The whole readings tie in together the need to trust in God our Father and in Jesus. Because if we allow ourselves to do that, when the storms of our lives are raging out of control, we can run to Him, wake Him up, and know the storm will become a gentle breeze. We can then let go, trusting in Him and knowing that the waves and wind still know His name.