Showing posts with label peter walking on water. Show all posts
Showing posts with label peter walking on water. Show all posts

In the Experience


Today, I'm still in the story in Matthew 14. Here's my question for today. After Jesus scraped Peter off the water and put him back in the boat, then the storm calmed. NKJV says the winds ceased. Then, the next verse says they worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God." Was it Jesus' dramatic rescue of Peter? Or was it that the storm stopped once Jesus got in the boat with them? He is the Prince of Peace after all. 

Either way, now all of a sudden they see Him for who He is. That's interesting to me because if you thumb back through the previous chapters you'll see he's already fed 5000 with a few loaves of bread, healed a man with a withered hand, made a mute man speak, healed two blind men, and set to demon-possessed men free from their torment. None of those times did the disciples worship Him and recognize Him for who He was. 

Why do you think that was? Hadn't they seen all these miracles? Or at least heard about some of them? Yet when He gets in their boat and calms the storm, they truly SEE Him. I think it's because all of a sudden it affected them. They had seen blind eyes and deaf ears open - perhaps they rejoiced. But it wasn't them. They saw the demon-possessed be freed. But it wasn't them. They saw Jesus bless the loaves and feed 5000+ with basketfuls left over - but it wasn't them.

Now that He's in the boat, now that He calmed their fears - they could see. It was their souls in jeopardy and they were in the direct line of a miracle. It made all the difference. You might say that Jesus healed the blindness in their soul. Even though they witnessed all the other miracles - this was their experience. They saw. They felt. They knew.

Sometimes, we just don't get it until He walks into our experience. Until He calms the storms affecting our souls, sometimes we just can't see Him. Remember Hagar? When God walked into her tumultuous life, she said - He's the God who sees. She got it. (Genesis16) When Hagar knew God heard her - She said He's the God who hears. (Genesis 21) Those times in between, she had to trust that He was still right there working on her behalf. 

Today, I'll remind myself that God is in my "here." I will turn my thoughts to all I've seen Him do through the years, and I'll trust that He continues to work on my behalf. As I go about my day today - I'll purposefully LOOK for Him to be in my situation. I'll wait on Him and ask Him to calm the storm blowing in my heart. Will you join me?


___________________________________________________

31 Days in Psalm 31 devotional book cover


Check out my bookstores. I have eBook devotionals, Bible study guides, poetry, and more in my Dove's Fire Ministries bookstore. My Amazon bookshelf has a couple of those in print or on Kindle. My devotional 31 Days in Psalm 31 is all about seeking God from the cave! Check it out!





The Sent Ones

 

Me and Chris at Tae Kwon Do

When we think about Jesus sending out His disciples the12 being sent out to preach the gospel, heal the sick, and cast out demons come to mind. Maybe we think about the 70 He sent out later on. Or perhaps we even think about the Great Commission and how we are all sent to make disciples of all nations. What we don't think about is Matthew 14, when Jesus sent His disciples into a storm.

We could argue that He didn't know there was a storm coming - but since He is Jesus - that argument won't hold up. In Matthew 14:22 Jesus "made His disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake while He sent the people home." (NLT) After they boarded the boat and headed out across the sea, Jesus spent some time alone in prayer. While He was praying, the disciples found themselves on the sea, at night, fighting a bad storm.

He knew there was a storm building - but He sent them anyway. Of course, about three in the morning, He came to them walking on the water. But I still can't get over the fact that He knew there was a storm and He sent them anyway.

My point? God doesn't always help us avoid bad, difficult, hurtful, or hard situations. But He will come to us in our point of need. He will bring us His peace in the midst of the storms life tosses our way. He will equip us for the journey and He won't leave us alone in the storm. Think about this - if Jesus had said, there's a storm so I'm not sending you out on the boat tonight - Peter would have missed the opportunity of walking on water. The disciples would have missed a huge lesson on faith and trust. They would have missed the revelation that He was who He said He was. (verse 33)

God doesn't always protect us from the storm - but He keeps us in the storm. Just like the disciples, we learn so much in the midst of the storm. Our faith is stretched. Opportunities to trust Him abound. And we understand more about who He is - we see Him more clearly.

Today, I'm going to thank Him for the storms. My prayer will be that He will increase my faith and trust in Him; and that I will be able to see Him through the wind and rain. I'll look to Him on the rocky seas of life and trust Him for one more trip across the lake (translated - one more day!). I'm going to look for opportunities to trust Him and step out of the boat onto faith. Will you join me?

_______________________________________________________________________

Poem for Caregivers Book Cover


Time for a new devotional, study guide, or poetry book? I have a little bit of everything (some free) in my ebook store. I have a few available in print or for Kindle on Amazon too.

The Stare

  Do you ever just find yourself sitting and staring at the wall? It doesn't really happen too often because, quite frankly, who has tim...