Am I Peter?

Am I Peter?

I see the Lord at work where we are going; much like Peter saw Jesus walking on water. It looks impossible. It looks scary. It looks exciting. 

Peter wants to be there, to experience it firsthand.

I can almost picture it. On the boat, the disciples row and fight to keep afloat in the midst of a powerful storm. They are exhausted and the chaos around them may prove to be their demise.  They rock to and fro, on the verge of giving up hope, when someone shouts, “What’s that?!”

They all turn their attention to the shout and in the distance, just as a wave crests, they see it. “A ghost!” shouts another disciple. They tremble.

“Have courage! It’s me. Don’t be afraid,” comes the voice they all know, the voice of the One they follow. Hope.

Peter’s hearts is racing with adrenaline and unexpectedly he shouts, “If it’s You, command me to come to You on the water.” The other disciples stare at him in disbelief. It’s 3am and Peter has lost his mind.

Without hesitation, Jesus utters one simple word, “Come.”

Immediately, Peter abandons all and climbs out of the beaten boat, still thrashing in the waves. The disciples watch in wonder as Peter is suspended on the surface of the water, Jesus just a few steps away.

He walks on the water, his mouth open in amazement. He sees Jesus and a smile forms.

Then it hits him: I’m walking on water in the middle of a storm. I’m walking on water. In the middle of a storm. His heart races, his eyes dart back and forth, and his feet begin to sink. The waves seem higher than before, the wind stronger. “Lord, save me!” he yells above the howl of the wind.

 Jesus, ever faithful, immediately reaches out His hand and takes hold of him.

“You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

The same one with the faith to step out of the boat is deemed the one of little faith.

The words must have echoed in Peter’s heart in the days, weeks, and years thereafter.

What would have happened if he had just believed? No doubt, just pure faith.

There is a war in the Jung|e. It’s a battle that’s been raging in the hearts and lives of the natives for centuries. And Jesus is there, doing the impossible.  Walking on the water. And here, safe in the boat, I beg Him to let us walk with Him. Our prayer echoes Peter’s, “Command us to come out of the boat.”

And He does.

So we begin our descent from the safety of our boat.

And the question lingers: When my feet hit the water, will I have the faith? Or will I, like Peter, begin to sink?

When the waves are high and the wind is strong and the battle rages and the days are long, will I remain firmly planted on the water my Jesus has empowered me to walk on?

Or will I hear the words, “Why did you doubt?”

“May I be found full of faith,” my heart prays, as my feet touch the water.