I don't have much to say, so I won't say much. :) the purpose of this blog is to build one another up. To encourage one another, and to grow spiritually. I pray my words will do so for you, and your words do so for me. I am here to share my thoughts with you, and I am open to constructive criticism and additional thoughts. In fact, they would be appreciated. The past few weeks I've been thinking about a concept that I believe is crucial to Christian living.
Matthew 14:25 says, "...He (Jesus) came to them (the disciples), walking on the sea." Picture this for a moment. Jesus, without any effort, with magnificent power and strength, walking on the water. The waves crashing against Him, the wind blowing water in His face, and yet, there He is, unmoved, unharmed, walking toward the boat... No fear in Him, complete peace on His face, in full control of the storm. This is the Jesus Peter sees, this is the Jesus Peter desires to serve. Verse 28 shows Peters reaction to the Jesus He was seeing. Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus."
Today, right now, whatever circumstances you are in, whatever problems you have, all the things you do, everyday, whatever makes up your life, is the storm. You are Todays version of Peter, and The Holy Spirit is the person of God we have, right now. Here. The Holy Spirit is just as unmovable, just as strong, just as confident, and just as in control. We, like Peter, have taken a step toward Him in reaction to who He is. In reaction to His magnificence. In desparation to be saved from the storm, in a desire to be wrapped in His arms of safety, in a longing to be close to his power, and wonder, and love.
Soon after Peter makes a step toward Jesus, we see him began to sink. Verse 30 starts out, "But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and began to sink..." Peter was completely helpless, without the power of Jesus. Without Jesus, Peter has nowhere to go, but down. He can't even stand on the water, much less walk toward Jesus. How did Peter lose the power of Jesus? He lost his focus on Jesus. He began to worry He became scared, He was distracted by the circumstances around him. He cries out in desperation "Lord, save me!" How often do we do this? We take our confident step toward Him, and so quickly begin to worry, become scared,and get distracted by the circumstances around us. How quick we are to claim we trust in Him, and soon find ourselves sinking once again. We are utterly helpless without the power of the Holy Spirit. Without Him, we have no where to go, but down. We cannot stand in life, much less walk toward Him, without His help. We cannot lose focus of Him, for when our focus is on Him, we will never sink... We will have peace in the midst of life. We will never worry, or become scared. Do you worry? What scares you? Are you distracted?
I must admit that I often must answer 'yes' to those questions. But lately, The Holy Spirit has given me the kind of peace that I believe all Christians can have, and should have. The next verse (31) shows us the kind of God we serve. Peter cried out "Lord, save me!" and "Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him..." Jesus was there, waiting with love and anticipation, longing to help Peter, the second he cried out. Have you lost focus? Did you answer 'yes' to any of those questions? All you have to do is cry out to Him. He is waiting, in anticipation, longing to help you. Cry out, and immediately he will stretch out His hand, and take hold of you.
So we cry out, whats next? I believe the answer is peace. Verse 32 says 'When they got into the boat, the wind stopped." This verse brings comfort to us. He is in control of the storm. He is in control of your life, of the circumstances, good and bad. When we place our trust in Him, He brings peace. Peace about life, peace about circumstances, situations, and problems, peace in every day, no matter what.
We are powerless without Him. We will most assuredly sink if we lose focus on Him. When we sink, all we must do is cry out, and He will reach out his hand to us. Trust Him, and He will bring you the ultimate peace.
Think about your life today. Are you sinking? Or are you walking on water? Do you have the kind of peace described above? When is the last time you worried about something? Join with me in this blog... Walk on water toward a God of love and peace.
