Lenten Reader | Day 14

March 5th, 2026

Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, because they all saw him and were terrified.

Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.

When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.

Mark 6:45-56

It Is I

When I read about Jesus’s miracles in the gospels, I often try to imagine what it would have been like to be one of the apostles. On one hand, it seems exciting – a life of constant amazement and deep learning as a member of the Messiah’s inner circle, travelling from town to town performing miracles and gaining a large following. On the other hand, they each left behind the lives they knew to become fishers of people, a role that is way more unpredictable and confusing than I think I would be comfortable with.

For that reason, I think if I saw Jesus walking on water, I would have been just as terrified as the apostles were. They had just witnessed the miraculous feeding of the five thousand but didn’t understand what had happened because their hearts were hardened. And yet, as they struggled to propel their boat against the wind and waves, Jesus chose that moment to reveal His full divinity to them. He wanted to “pass by” them, just as God did to Moses in Exodus 34, and He’s hovering over the waters like the Spirit of God did at creation. When the disciples are afraid, he reassures them with the simple, yet powerful, phrase: “It is I”.
As He joins them, the wind calms, and the apostles understand that He truly is the Son of God.

Just like that night with the disciples, Jesus is with us in our chaos, and He wants to make His presence known to us. This Lenten season, I encourage us all to ask ourselves: Where has God been making Himself known to us, but our hearts are too hardened to see? Maybe it's in the beauty of nature, answered prayers, or a small sense of peace in difficult times. Today, I pray that God will open the eyes of our hearts so we can truly see Him and experience peace in His presence.

Maddie Huff