No. 26.
CHRIST IN THE STORM.
BY THE AUTHOR OF "PEEP OF DAY."
LONDON:
JOHN HATCHARD AND SON.
1848
CHRIST IN THE STORM.
There are a great many troubles in thislife. Ask your father and your mother[Pg 2]whether this is true. Your father willsay, "I have had a great many troubles;I have found it hard to get bread for mychildren." Your mother will say, "Ihave had a great deal of sorrow in bringingup my little family."
My dear child, have you had anytroubles? I am sure you have had some.Have you ever felt great pain? have youlost a little baby brother or sister? haveyou got into disgrace? have you beenpunished for your faults?
There is one friend to whom every onemay go in every trouble. It is Jesus, theSon of God. When we are unhappy, ifwe cry unto him, he will hear us andhelp us. Once he lived down upon thisearth, and was a man. Now he is in[Pg 3]heaven, and he is a man still as well asGod.
I will tell you how he helped some ofhis friends out of trouble when he livedin this world. His friends were calleddisciples. One evening they went intoa ship. Jesus did not go with them;he stayed where he was, and spent thenight all alone on the top of a mountain,praying to his Father. God was hisFather. The disciples were in their littleship on the water when the wind beganto blow very hard indeed. The wavesrose high, and the ship was tossed about.Every moment the poor men were afraidthat the water would fill their ship, andthat they should sink to the bottom ofthe sea.
[Pg 4]All night long the disciples werein sad distress, trying with all theirmight to row their ship to land, but allthey could do was of no use. At lastthey saw a man walking on the sea.There he was in the midst of the greatwaves, walking as on the dry land. Hewent faster than the ship, and seemed asif he would pass by it. The disciples didnot know who it was. They thought itcould not be a man with a body likeours; they supposed it was a spirit, whohas no body. They were very muchfrightened, and they cried out in theirtrouble. Then they heard a voice saying,"It is I, be not afraid." Whose voicewas that? You know, and they knew;it was the voice of Jesus. Though the[Pg 5]winds were whistling and the waves roaring,his voice could be heard.
One of the disciples, named Peter, said,"Lord, if it be thou, bid me come untothee on the water." Jesus said, "Come."So Peter got out of the ship and walkedon the water to go to Jesus. He believedthat Jesus could help him to walk on thewater, and Jesus did help him. Butwhen Peter saw how high the wind was,he began to be afraid. This was wrong.He ought to have trusted in Jesus. Soonhe felt that he was sinking, and he criedout, "Lord, save me." Jesus heard thatshort prayer; he was very near, and hestretched out his hand, and caught holdof Peter.
[Pg 6]Trusting in God is called faith. Peterhad a little