A Watery Stroll

Sometimes we don’t accomplish our dreams because we are afraid. We doubt our abilities and so we don’t even try. We give up before we even start. What if Thomas Edison never tried. Or, how about Alexander Graham Bell? Inventions usually don’t happen on the first try, and some are discovered accidentally. There’s a saying, “aim at nothing and you’ll hit it every time.” What have we missed out on because we never tried in the first place. Every person has been created for a reason. We all have a purpose that God has given to us. God wants to work in and through our lives, but we have to be willing to aim for His will. There’s a wonderful story in Matthew 14 that speaks volumes about what happens when we trust Jesus. When our focus is on Him we can step into His plan for our lives.

““Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:29-31). There are several lessons we can learn from these three verses. Lesson number one: Jesus is telling us to “come.” He wants us to come to HIm. Let Peter, Jesus is telling us to step out of the safety of our boat, and onto the water. Jesus is calling us to trust HIm. Look at Peter’s response when Jesus tells him to come to Him. Did Peter sit there in the boat and think about it? Maybe, maybe not. However, these verses would indicate that Peter didn’t give it a second thought. He jumped at the opportunity to go to Jesus. No hesitation, no debate went on in his mind. Apparently, Peter didn’t even consult with his friends who were in the boat with him. Peter had the opportunity to come to Jesus and he wasn’t going to miss it. He leapt out of the boat and onto the water.

Notice what happened. Peter walked on water. It might have been only a few steps, but we are told that he started toward Jesus walking on the water. Peter was committed, he was determined to follow Jesus’ call for him to “come.” Peter was able to walk on the water because his focus wasn’t on his abilities. His focus was on Jesus who had the ability to assist Peter in accomplishing this feat. As Peter was walking across the water his focus changed. He took his eyes off Jesus, and started focusing on the wind. His focus shifted from Jesus to the wind. When Peter focused on something other than Jesus, he lost his ability to walk on the water and he began to sink. His fear disrupted his progress. His fear changed the outcome. Even in fear and doubt, Jesus was there to save Peter. Jesus reached out and grabbed hold of Peter. Jesus then asks Peter the same question He asks us. “Why did you doubt?”

Many times we don’t accomplish what Jesus asks of us because we allow fear and doubt to direct us. We take our eyes off Jesus and place them on the external things of this world. How many things are we missing out on because we never step out of the boat and onto the water. Fear paralyzes us and keeps us frozen inside the safety of our boat. Jesus is calling out to us “come.” The choice is, do we sit there in the safety of our boat? Or do we focus on Jesus and step out onto the water? Aim at nothing and we’ll hit it every time.