But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
Matthew 14:30,31

      You can see Jesus walking across the water coming toward you where you are sitting in your little secure boat. All at once, you feel the excited, exhilarating urge to join Him on the water. You know you can do it. You have plenty of faith.
     He says the words you have been waiting for, bidding you to join Him.
     You get up, grab the rail and hoist yourself out over the side.
     Suddenly you are standing on the water. Your circumstances are beneath you – all the troubles, all the things of this life that bug and harass you, the world in general with its stress and worries are no longer there. You are functioning in another sphere. You are moving in a spiritual realm, where all that exists is Jesus, you and the water beneath your feet.
     Your little man-made boat that made you feel so secure is now yards away. This is God’s realm you are traveling in. It’s all His creation now.
     Then the telephone rings, the waters are churning. You take your eyes off the Son to view the turbulence in your life. You realize how far away you are from the security of your little boat. Suddenly you are frightened. It’s all coming back, the problems at work, at home. It’s overwhelming – and you begin to sink.
     You cry for help and Jesus comes to your rescue as always. He pulls you up and helps you back to your boat, to your man-made security you thought you needed.
     You are so humiliated. You wanted to stay out there with Him. It was so refreshing to feel so spiritual, so far above it all. Maybe next time you’ll be able to stay out a little longer…But for now you need the boat.
     That’s okay. Jesus is in there with you, remember? He’s not condemning your apparent failure. He knows it was just a trial run. There’s going to be a next time. You’re growing.
     Hoist the sail, and away you go to the next adventure, oh you of little faith.

Copyright 2008 by H.D. Shively

Return to Devotionals | Return to Homepage