Mark 4:35-41 (NLT)

³⁵ As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” ³⁶ So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). ³⁷ But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water.

³⁸ Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”

³⁹ When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

⁴¹ The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!”

• “Let’s cross to the other side”
• Mark 5:1-20, Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19

• “But soon a fierce storm came up.”
• The significance of the sea, waves, wind, and water
• The early Christian symbol of the church as a boat

• “Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.”
• A big arrow pointing the disciples to Jesus’ Identity

“This tale, though, isn’t just about danger and rescue. Behind stories like this, Mark’s readers would probably have heard older echoes. Think of Jonah. Instead of doing what God told him, he was sailing away in the wrong direction; a great storm arose, which was only calmed when, at his prompting, the sailors threw him overboard. Or think of the Israelites, coming out of Egypt when God made a way through the sea. Think even further back, to the stories of creation, when God’s order, God’s new world, emerged from the dark primal sea. The Psalms several times speak of the creator God who rules the raging sea, telling its rough and threatening waves to quiet down. 

So when Jesus rescues the disciples from a storm, we are witnessing something which says, in concrete terms, what the parables earlier in the chapter were saying in word-pictures. God’s sovereign power is being unleashed; that is, God’s kingdom is at hand.” (Excerpt from Mark for Everyone by N.T. Wright)

For next week: Read Mark 5 and journal on Mark 5:21-43. Follow the format of Observation, Reflection and Prayer as outlined on the Come With Me card and using your Mark journal. Download the Filament App for Mark as you study the passage in your time alone with God each day.

REFLECT TOGETHER ON SUNDAY’S MESSAGE 

• Gather together with prayer and time of conversation, sharing, or even an ice-breaker.
• Review the main points from the sermon outline.
• Share with one another as a whole group or in smaller groups, using these prompts only as suggestion: 
• How did the message impact you this week?
• What image from the message has stuck with you?
• What is capturing your attention this Lent? 

CONNECT WITH GOD (Select one of the below practices or choose a practice from the previous week.) 

• The Cairn Prayer Practice 

Named after a wayfinding tool on a hard to discern path, the Cairn Prayer and its four simple questions help us follow Jesus wholeheartedly and gain clarity of focus in our faith walk. In this practice we invite intimacy with God and pay attention to what actions God is calling forth. 

In prayer or your journal, reflect on the following questions, allowing time to thoughtfully cultivate awareness of your whole self - mind, heart and body and attentively listen for the Holy Spirit’s inspiration. Let this practice be a dialogue between your true self and God. 

• What are you grateful for and why? (Let this be your prayer of gratitude)
• What do you want? Is there a deeper longing under the initial desire? (Offer your honest hopes, desires and longings to God’s care and transformative work)
• What do you like about God? (Tell God in a prayer of adoration)
• How can you love today? (Ask for the courage, strength and wisdom to love well) 

CONNECT WITH SCRIPTURE (As a reminder: this is the Bible passage for the message on February 25th) 

• Read: Mark 5:21-43
• Use the “Come with Me” card, along with your Mark Bible Journal to engage with the Scripture passage for the coming week. 
• Observe: Dig into the scripture through doodling, highlighting, note-taking. Pay attention to words or phrases that seem important or raise questions for you. 
• Meditate: Slow down. Read Mark 5:21-43 again and engage your imagination and senses to connect to the passage. Reflect on your experience in your journal. 
• Pray: What prayer of praise, gratitude, or confession arises from your heart and mind as you meditate on this passage? 

• Reflect together (in pairs): Spend time sharing your reactions and reflections of Mark 5:21-43 using these prompts as a guide. 
• What does the passage reveal to you about Jesus and Jesus’ mission?
• Where are you in this story? Who are you?

DIG DEEPER (Select the best questions or customize the questions for your group.)

• Discuss the context and background of this passage. Where has Jesus come from? What happened before this passage?
• How are the two stories of healing similar and different?
• How does Jesus respond to the faith of Jairus and also the woman?
• If you could highlight one theme of the passage, what would it be?
• What part of Mark 5:21-43 are you still wrestling with?
• What do you think Mark 5:21-43 demonstrates about the kingdom of God?

NEXT STEPS 

• Read through Mark 5 by February 25^th . Observe. Meditate. Pray.

PRAYER 

Name your needs, concerns, and joys with the group. Pray for one another. Then close your prayer by saying together: Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayers.