"Then when they had rowed about three or four miles
they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were
frightened. But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid".
(John 6:19-20).
Hey Gang: I was sitting outside my bride’s favorite store (Goodwill), when a thought suddenly popped into my think
tank. You know thoughts that suddenly pop into your think tank come from
one of three sources - Abba Father, self, or the evil one. That is why it
is important to spend time each morning preparing your Armor for repelling the
evil one and hanging additional cannon fodder from the Lord on the knobs that
you developed in the past as a shield against the darts.
The thought that popped in came in the form of a
question? How does the message of Matthew 14 fit into today's walk
with the Lord? In the story we have all of the ingredients of a very
scary experience. We have wind, very rough seas and the blackness of
night. I think if we each took a moment or two, we could recall a time
when we, too, faced similar ingredients.
But they had something going for them, Jesus was on the mountain
praying. He continues to intercede for us: and, if He tells us to immediately get into the boat and push out
into harm’s way, He will never
leave us or forsake us! The story tells us He came at the exact moment
when we were about to give up hope and face the reality that, if
something does not happen now, I mean "right
now" they were going to have a face to face meeting with Davy Jones.
Notice His first words: "Hey gang, don't be afraid". Again, fix the picture in
your mind, blackness of night, winds howling, seas swirling and He says
"do not be afraid". Tough? Yes! And keep in mind they,
the disciples had not had what one might call a great day filled with examples
of their great faith. It was to be a life changing experience, but at
that very moment their thoughts were not on faith issues but on survival
issues. Been there, done that! How about you?
And, in the midst of terrorizing experience, I find an
unbelievable statement coming forth from the mouth of the impetuous one, Peter "Lord if it is really you, command me
to come to You in the water". What kind of courage
would it take to respond to Jesus’ command, "Come!" Wow, Lord!
Peter heard one word from the Lord and he stepped out in faith:
however, I suspect the ever- present "Slu Foot was there whispering in his
ear. ‘Peter, you can't do this, it is impossible. I mean look around you,
water under your feet, howling winds, swirling seas!’ And Matthew says, "Peter
saw the howling wind and he became frightened and began to sink."
There are so many wonderful lessons in this chapter that can be
life changing experiences for you. But there are two that most impacted
on my life. First, when Peter cried out "Lord
save me”, and the next words,
"Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of Peter".
True he added a little rebuke to Peter, "You of little faith, why
do you doubt?” Then the second power verse "And those
who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, You are certainly God's Son!"
Soooo, my young friends, Several thoughts that I would
challenge you to consider as you traverse this day: First, are you secure
in the boat that is Christ Jesus? In our story the boat is a place of
security in Christ. Keep in mind the enemy has his dart gun loaded and
ready for action. Second, we have the call to “Go into the world and be witnesses” of God's great love. If we stay
in the boat, we are going to be pummeled by the evil one; if we get out of
the boat, we have His help and can then rise above the storm. But, we
have to follow Peter's example and be willing to "get out of the
boat"!
Blessings,
Gramps
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