“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.”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭36‬ ‭NKJV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/114/mrk.4.36.NKJV

When Jesus went into the boat and the storm, He was leaving behind the multitudes. However, there is a phrase that can easily be missed: other little boats were with Him.

Oftentimes we are not always aware of the little boats surrounding us, especially in a storm. Naturally the Bible is focused on Jesus and His disciples and the interaction between them. Nonetheless, that interaction affects many others. The same is true for us and our engagement with Jesus on a daily basis.

It’s interesting to me that this story includes a detail like this because if I’m honest, I’m not always aware of the little boats following me. The little eyes of a child, the onlookers during hardships and turmoil, are many times unnoticed during a personal storm.

Moreover what is essential to remember is that there are those same kinds of eyes and lives with me in those very same storms! These little boats in Jesus’ story were going through the very same storm as He and His disciples. Yet those other little boats didn’t have Jesus in their boat!

Thankfully Jesus is no longer restricted to just a few disciples’ “boats”. Yet, while Jesus was in the flesh, He could only be in one place-at-a-time. Obviously the disciples didn’t waste too much time after the boat was sinking to go to Jesus and awaken Him. But I want you to think for a moment about the smaller boats that were with them. What was potentially going through their minds? If their boats were smaller, how much faster were they going to sink? What’s more is they didn’t have Jesus in their boat!

Here are a few things that have come to mind with the recent storm I’ve been in that I’d like to share with you for some encouragement.

1. There are little boats all around me even though I’m going through the storm. Therefore, I need to be careful how I respond and react. I have to be aware that a storm is still a testimony time. My faith and my God are being evaluated by the little boats around me.
2. The little boats are in the storm and they don’t have the same relationship with Jesus that I may have. My relationship can benefit them and me. When God blesses me, I can pass those same kind of blessings onto others. When God answers my prayers, those around me often get blessings from those answers. Just imagine with me the joy and excitement the little boats must have had when that storm stopped! They had no idea what was happening in the boat of the disciples and Jesus. When the winds and waves stopped though, everyone knew there was only one reason and that was Jesus.
3. It is up to me as a Christ- Follower to go to Him in the midst of my storms and demonstrate to others what faith, trust, hope, and prayer looks like. Because I have Jesus in my “boat” (life), I have access to Him in any storm at any time. I don’t have to wait for the water to get inside before I go to Him. I don’t have to wait until I can’t do anything other. No! Jesus is the first and last and only One Who can help me with life’s storms and circumstances. He is the only One who can help regardless of the size of the boats or storms.

I hope this will encourage you or spark some thought. If it has, please share a comment or share the post with another.