“But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. Jesus was sleeping …” Mark 4:37-38 (NLT)
It was a chaotic day, and my body was holding the stress. I felt like someone had plugged me into a jolting electrical socket.
Do you know that feeling of being both “tired and wired”?
Anxiety can feel deeply disorienting and disconnecting. I’ve often returned to one scene in the Gospel of Mark that puts vivid imagery to the landscape of an anxiety-riddled inner life.
Jesus and His disciples were on the Sea of Galilee when a fierce storm came upon them: “High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. Jesus was sleeping …” (Mark 4:37-38).
This fierce windstorm mirrors what happens in our bodies when we’re anxious. Anxiety is the body’s way of responding to threats, real or imagined, that trigger the nervous system into survival mode. Our bodies tighten and our minds race because deep down, we don’t feel safe. Anxiety is always about a felt sense of catastrophic aloneness and isolation.
When I feel those churning waves and stormy waters brewing within, I relate to the disciples’ desperate cries: “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” (Mark 4:38, NLT).
God, do You see me?
Do You care?
Why aren’t You doing anything?
How long will this go on?
With the simple command, “Be still,” Jesus calmed their external environment (Mark 4:39, NLT). He moved toward them, bringing His presence to their fear. But what captures my attention is how we find Him just moments before: asleep.
His sleeping wasn’t an absence of care but an embodiment of the deeper rest He invites each of us into. A kind of rest that can settle our inner world — not in the absence of external storms but despite them.
Here, Jesus embodied the psychological experience of living anchored in God. We can rest in the “still waters” of God’s love and care (Psalm 23:2, ESV) even when the winds and waters of our external world churn. Jesus models what the field of psychology has only recently discovered:
The antidote for anxiety is not calm; it’s safety.
While calm might bring short-term relief, true relief from anxiety comes when our bodies experience and internalize a felt sense of safety.
Some of us have been taught to view anxiety as a character flaw, but it’s not. Anxiety is appropriate in situations that are unsafe or overwhelming. God's invitation is not to pretend there is nothing to fear. Rather, when we feel the storm of anxiety churn within us, we are invited to sink into the indwelling presence of our Resting One, who can help us navigate our fear.
I wish I could tell you that I stay in this grounded, connected place all the time. I don’t, but I’m learning to return more quickly. We can come back to this still and holy place within, experiencing an internal sense of safety with the God who never leaves — who has been there all along.
Dear God, help me rest in You today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Taylor Joy Murray’s book, Stop Saying I’m Fine: Finding Stillness When Anxiety Screams, blends therapeutic insight with spiritual truth to help you dig beneath the surface of your anxiety. If you want to better understand why and where your anxiety comes from and you long to learn a different, more compassionate approach to engaging with your anxiety, this book is for you.
To learn more about Taylor; her books; her podcast, Faith & Feelings; and other resources, visit her website, or follow her on Instagram.
We all need practical skills to cultivate emotionally healthy relationships. In her most recent Faith & Feelings podcast series, Taylor joined licensed therapist Carley Marcouillier to discuss eight core skills for emotionally healthy relationships. Each episode unpacks one skill and how to begin practicing it in daily life. Listen to the full series today on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Isaiah 43:2, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you …” (ESV).
Psalm 23:2, “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters” (ESV).
What are the “stormy waters” in your life right now? What do they feel like in your body?
What practices help you return to a still and holy place within, even if just for a moment? We’d love to hear from you! Share your thoughts in the comments.
© 2025 by Taylor Joy Murray. All rights reserved.
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