Make Way!

Matthew 14:29 – He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. (ESV)

The other day, Sophia, my eighteen-month-old daughter, faced up to me. We were stuck between the kitchen sink and the chairs from the kitchen table. I surmised that there was room for only one of us to pass by. The other party would just have to wait.

Well, it transpired that I was wrong. As we walked towards each other, in the style of Gary Cooper fresh off his horse, Sophia just kept on walking towards me, and then swung through the gap between my knees to come out on the other side: amazing. I could not see how she did it, but did it, she did!

Perhaps a better analogy would be David running towards Goliath and knocking him out with a stone, confident in the final outcome. Failure was not a consideration.

Peter, apart from being the only one of the disciples to walk on water, was prepared to step out of the boat and put his life where his heart was. It was a matter of obedience, trust, and faith in Jesus. Even then, he was intimidated by his circumstances.

As a nervous abseiler [rappeller], I think that I would have stumbled at the point of letting go of the side of the boat, with a word to Jesus such as, "Are You really, really sure about this for me?" This is apart from actually stepping out further into the sea! So for me, Peter is a real hero who acted in faith and looked to Jesus.

I know Hebrews 11:1 off by heart; I just have trouble living it out day-by-day, especially when the waves get higher: "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (ESV)

Maybe it is God's way of stopping me from resting on my past, or maybe it is a reminder of who ultimately decides our futures? Or maybe I am just a control freak?

Whatever the answer, I believe in a God who makes a way where there is no way, if He decides to. I am also willing to trust that His outcome may be one that I have not wanted, or as yet, been unable to see from where I am currently standing. All I can do is to hold out my hand and ask for His help.

Prayer: Lord, You alone are the giver of life and the Creator of all that is, for which we give You thanks and praise. Please forgive us for all those things that influence us, but are not of Your making. We call out to You to lift us up once more, and to deliver us into a sound mind and a quiet heart when times are turbulent, especially when the outcomes may not be to our liking, and even when they are! Thank You, Lord, for always listening, and hearing our prayers in Jesus' name. Amen.

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