Introduction

Today we're going to look at Matthew 8:23-27:

And when he got to the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea so that the boat was being swamped by the waves, but he was asleep. They went and woke him, saying, "Save us, Lord, for we are perishing." He said, "Why are you afraid, oh you of little faith?" Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great clam, and the men marveled, saying, "What sort of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey him?"

On June 9th, 1973, a horse by the name of Secretariat rode off into human history and catapulted onto the hearts of humanity. The setting was the Belmont Stakes, the third leg of the infamous Triple Crown (the three most renowned horse races in the country). Secretariat arrived amidst great fanfare. He had won the previous two legs of the Triple Crown, so people were beginning to wonder, Would this be the first horse in years to win all three Triple Crown races? Yet horse racing experts were concerned because the Belmont Stakes wasn't necessarily suited to Secretariat's strength. Secretariat was given to strong bursts of speed and energy, but this was going to be more of a marathon race; the track was a mile and a half long. Could Secretariat pull it off?

When the bell sounded, Secretariat took off fast! The horse racing experts thought that surely Secretariat would not be able to maintain the pace and speed at which he was going, but as the race progressed, not only did he maintain the pace, but he ran faster and faster, lengthening his lead until he did the unthinkable: Secretariat won the race by 31 links, a record that had never before been seen.

Equally as astonishing as his record that day was the ...

Bryan Loritts is the Lead Pastor of Abundant Life Church in Silicon Valley, California and the editor of Letters to a Birmingham Jail (Moody Publishers, April 2014) .