Thinking
Outside the “Boat”!
By Karen D’Amore
When the
disciples saw Him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,”
they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said
to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to
come to you on the water.” “Come,” He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and
came toward Jesus.
Matthew 14: 26-29 (NIV)
Jesus was stretching the disciples
to exercise their faith in Him, for when He would no longer be with them…physically. Peter responds by exercising, what some may call…
“reckless” abandoned faith! In my
personal faith-walk, I recall wavering between doubt and trust, before
recognizing that abandoned faith “colors outside the lines” and “thinks outside
the box!” Here we see Jesus modeling “out of the box” behavior when, instead of
arriving by boat, He reconnects with the disciples by walking on water. This
unexpected method of arrival frightened the disciples, drawing them to question
who Jesus was… thinking He was a ghost.
When I walked through a personal storm
with cancer, I struggled to recognize God’s presence in it. Praying God would
stop that storm, I found fear erupted when He didn’t. But like Peter, once I
exercised faith and stepped out of the boat, I was able to walk on water…with
Jesus. Through that experience, I learned that when Jesus doesn’t calm the
storm, He’s calling us to walk in it…with Him!
While the other disciples remained
in the safety of the boat, Peter steps out of his “comfort zone” and
experiences the miracle of walking on water. Thinking outside the boat requires
stepping out of our comfort zone…walking towards Jesus and trusting in His
power. We must then continue that walk of faith by keeping our eyes on
Jesus…instead of focusing on the stormy circumstances. Peter demonstrates how
to conquer our fears by moving forward in faith…even when we’re afraid.
It’s encouraging how Jesus used the obstacle
which made the disciples fearful (the sea) as a staircase for them to come to
Him. Paralyzing fear was my initial response to my cancer diagnosis! When I
stopped resisting that “storm” and allowed Jesus to rescue me and carry me
through those rough waters, He became my anchor of hope. The obstacle which incited
fear (cancer) and distanced me from Jesus became the staircase which drew me
closer and strengthened my faith in Him.
We’re promised, “When
you pass through the waters, I will
be with you” (Isaiah 43:2, NASB, emphasis added). Faith
requires stepping out of the comfort of our “boats”…into the storm. It entails
thinking outside the “boat” where the impossible becomes…Him-possible!
GOING
DEEPER:
1. Are you docked in a safe harbor
or walking on water?
FURTHER
READING:
