Mt 8:23-27
[Jesus] got into a boat and his disciples followed him. 24Suddenly a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. 25They came and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” 26He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm. 27The men were amazed and said, “What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey?”
What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey? I was snorkeling at sea one summer when a strong wind suddenly came, followed by rain. A strong current swept me far from the boat. I swam frantically, but I did not seem to get closer to our boat. I shouted and cried and swam until I got exhausted and started to drown. I was pulled up to the boat by my companions, who were just as shocked as I was. Soon after, the sea calmed down, and everything returned to a sunny bright afternoon.
Only after the experience did I remember a lesson taught by a friend who knew the sea. When a strong current comes, just let nature pass while you stand and wait. After nature has passed, it is your turn to pass through. In short, simply obey the sea. Respect nature, and nature will respect you, too. Jesus has such profound respect for people and nature that even the sea obeys him!
My father used to say that nature has gone berserk because we have abused her. We now call this global warming. We have denuded our forests and polluted our seas. It is not surprising then that nature does not obey us. Holiness calls us to love not only people but also the planet Earth. That is why St. Francis calls the Sun his brother and the Moon his sister.