Matthew 14:13-33 Walking on Water

Ahhh...February, this is the time of year that I experience my first time walking on water.  I know it is frozen but I still walked on top of it!  A friend of mine, wanted to take me out to his uncle ice shack so that we could do a little fishing.  I had never done this before, and I was a little hesitate when we got to the lake because I had visions of falling through the ice.  I put one foot on the ice and then quickly retracted it.  My friend turned to see what the hold up was and sighed as he saw me at the shore paralyzed by fear.  "Yo Paul, look" he yelled and then proceeded to jump up and down on the ice.  "Stop it! You are going to die," I remember hollering back in a panic as I waited for him to fall through the ice.  Nothing happened.  He came back, took my hand and then suddenly we were on the ice.  All the hair on my neck stood up as we walked across the ice to the shack.  When we got there my friend just grinned at me "See silly, we are just fine."  We were just fine and I felt a little foolish for not taking his word for it.

 I wonder if I felt some of the same emotions that Peter did when Christ invited him out of the boat, onto the very non frozen Sea of Galilee?  I bet he was nervous.  I bet he was a little scared.  Peter did take those first steps onto water and started moving toward Jesus.  Then he realized what he was doing and he forgot who he was walking toward.  Peter began to sink and cried out to Jesus, who prompted came over to him and helped him back onto his feet and then back into the boat.  When they got back into the boat Jesus told Peter, "See silly, we are just fine."

Acting out our faith can be a scary thing.  It is hard to go against the grain of many things in our current society.  It is hard to help people that others have said we shouldn't help.  It is hard to not react to people instead of listening to them.  When we look around we feel that our faith can't help us, that the world is just that way, and that we may be drowning in all the business of what we "really need to do."  Jesus reminds us that trusting in him, we are able to do extraordinary things. We are able to feed the hunger.  We are able to help broker peace.  We are able to make a difference in this world.

So what are you nervous about this week?  Where have you felt your faith calling to you to act instead of staying on the side lines? Where do you feel yourself drowning in?  Look up and throw your hand up to Jesus.  With Jesus at your side, nothing is impossible.  "See silly, we are just fine."  When we listen to those worlds we change and so does the world.  How does this change how you will behave this week?  How will this affect how you will live?