The Jersey Shore's Historic Waves!

I don’t  know if you saw it or not, but the week before Christmas, the Jersey Shore experienced what some have considered to be historic waves. With wave heights reaching 20-22 feet (and some said there were even a few that reached 25 feet), surfers came from as far as Cape Cod and Southern California to take advantage of waves that were for the Jersey Shore, rare if not historic. One surfer described having to bail out on a wave that became too vertical and dropping two stories into the water below. I’m amazed he survived!  

As I watched the videos of the surfers and the waves, I was awestruck by the size of the waves, their power, and the fact that this was taking place right here in New Jersey. After all, as one surfer from New Jersey said, “This should be something that happens in Hawaii or Portugal…but it was happening in our backyard.”  Another person described the waves as “angry—very, very powerful.” (cbsnews.com, Dec. 21, 2023) For sure, they did seem quite angry and quite powerful. 

Any of us who have any kind of experience with the ocean know that it is a powerful thing. Every year people are overcome by riptides, waves too big for them to handle, and the unpredictability of an ocean that seems to have a mind of its own. Unless, like the surfers, you follow apps that give you details about tides, currents, wave heights, and swells, when you show up for a day at the beach you don’t really know what you will be facing. Some days all seems calm in that sea of blue or green before you. On other days, it’s power is overwhelming. And, there is nothing any of us can do about it. We cannot change the tides, currents, wave heights, or swells. No man has any power or authority over that massive body of water we call, the ocean. 

There is One, however, who does have such power and authority. The psalmist wrote, “You rule over the surging sea; when its waves mount up, you still them.” (Psalm 89:9 – NIV) And, “He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.” (Psalm 107:29)  

It is with this context in mind that the divinity of Jesus is revealed when, in the midst of a terrible storm that threatened the lives of his disciples, Jesus stood up in the boat that night, and stilled the waves with one very simple command, “Quiet! Be still!”  And we read, “…and it was completely calm.” To which the disciples responded, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” (Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41)  Well, he was not just a man; he was God, the only One who has power and authority over the waves!

So, the next time you go down by the ocean and witness it’s power, be reminded of the even greater power of the God whom we serve. After all, if he is able to calm the waves, he is more than able to take care of any whatever life might bring our way, and trust that at any moment he can give the command, “Quiet! Be still!” and it will be “completely calm.”  

Have a great day! 

- Pastor Tim Harris