One night, after a long day of teaching, Jesus and the disciples hopped in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. The sun was setting, and there were a number of other boats with them. They were looking forward to a quiet night across the lake after a busy day.

But, as it turns out, they were in for a night they would never forget.

Partway across the big lake, a great windstorm arose. The waves grew bigger and bigger until the boat was filling up with water, and almost everyone in the boat was filling up with fear. Many of Jesus’s disciples were fishermen. They were used to boats and water. So it must have been a wild storm to make them afraid.

And almost everyone was really, really afraid—almost, but not everyone. There was one man so unafraid of the storm that he was fast asleep in the back of the boat. That man was Jesus, and the disciples did not like that he was sleeping. This is the only time we read of Jesus’s being asleep in the Bible, and sure enough, it’s in the middle of a giant storm. Earlier in his ministry, Jesus had been awake praying when everyone was asleep. Now he was asleep when everyone was definitely awake.

“Teacher!” they shouted. “Don’t you care that we are all going to die?”

So much for Jesus’s catnap. He woke up—which is what the disciples wanted. But then Jesus did something none of the disciples were expecting. He rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!”

What a strange thing to do—shushing a storm. But that’s exactly what Jesus did. And you know what? The storm listened. Immediately the wind stopped blowing and the sea stopped churning. Everything was calm.

Everything, that is, except for the disciples. They were more afraid than ever. “Who is this, that even the wind and the waves obey him?” they asked. They had seen Jesus do some crazy things, but this was downright scary. If the creation listened to this man, maybe he was the Creator? Jesus was no ordinary man. He was unlike anyone the disciples had ever met, with power unlike anything they had ever seen.

But Jesus wasn’t interested in teaching them about the weather. He wanted them to learn about faith. With Jesus in the boat they had no reason to fear. With Jesus in their corner, they could face the future. No matter the storm, and no matter how much he seems to be sleeping, Jesus will always be with us.