Are You Caught in a Storm?
- Lauren
- Oct 29, 2024
- 2 min read
Updated: Nov 14, 2024
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you" – Isaiah 43:2
Have you felt like you have been barely keeping afloat lately? Are you passing through the deep waters in your life? Does it feel like Jesus is nowhere in sight?
Take heart, that He is indeed there.
When we feel like we are drowning, it can be difficult to focus on anything else but staying afloat. Have you ever witnessed someone struggling in the water be saved by a strong swimmer? What did you observe? There is a reason lifeguards are trained to be calm. When someone is unable to swim, they are scared. They are frantic.
Jesus knows how to calm our frantic souls.
Matthew 14:22-33 tells us of the famous story of Jesus walking on water. In the story, the disciples found themselves out in their boat, being tossed about by large waves. Jesus saw the boat, and He walked out on the water towards it. The disciples, “. . . cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid’” (verses 26-27). If you saw someone walking out on the water in the storm, what would you do? It may be easy for us to judge the disciples for their lack of faith, but they too were frantic out there. In their fear, they did not recognize who was coming towards them.
Their fear blinded them from recognizing the One who came to save them.
Yet, in the midst of their fear, Jesus told them it was Him. And despite that Jesus told them who He was, St. Peter was still skeptical. Peter boldly said to Jesus, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water” (Matt 14:28). Jesus invited Peter out onto the water, and Peter was indeed able to walk on it like Jesus! However, Peter’s fear got in the way. When Peter, “. . . noticed the strong wind, he became frightened. . .” and Peter called to Jesus to save him from drowning (verse 30). Jesus responded to Peter, “. . . ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’” (verse 31).
When in your life has Jesus called you out onto the stormy waves? Maybe you are in the midst of a storm right now (I know I am). Take heart, that Jesus invites us to walk on the water with Him. He does not want us to drown. He wants us to thrive.
Jesus will walk out into the storms of life with us, to save us, and to show us what we are capable of.
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.” John 14:1
In Christ,
Lauren
All scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible
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