“But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.” - Matthew 14:30
Life is so uncertain. One moment everything seems to be going great and the next minute the world seems to be crashing in. One moment you're singing God's praises and the next you are singing the blues. You can begin the day with high expectations and finish the day on your knees in desperation.
It seems strange that victory and defeat can occur so close together. Our mountain-top experiences can be followed by deep, dark valleys. Elijah prayed for fire to fall on Carmel and soon thereafter he prayed for his life to end. Some of us can relate to this.
Simon Peter experienced a spiritual high and a spiritual low within seconds of each other. On one hand, he is one of only two men known to walk on water. The other man was the Son of Man, our Lord Jesus. Peter did walk on the water. What an experience!
As Peter was walking on the water, the Bible says, “But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.” His fears swallowed up his faith. Instead of walking on the water, Peter began to sink.
Many of us can relate with Peter. We have a great experience at church on Sunday, followed by a horrible day on Monday. A man once told me, “Monday is the devil's way of paying you back for a good Sunday.”
Like Peter, we can feel like we are on top of the world. The next moment, we feel like we are going under. Circumstances can overwhelm us at times. We feel like we are sinking in the tide of discouragement or defeat. The changing currents seem to be sweeping us under. We feel like we are drowning.
When Peter began to sink, he did the only thing he knew to do. He cried to out to Jesus for help. In such a moment, he did not verbalize an impressive prayer. He didn't pray for the missionaries in Indonesia. Neither did he use flowery words of praise. Instead, he prayed a pitiful prayer of just three words: “Lord, save me.”
In our times of desperation, there is only one thing we can do. Like Peter, we seek the help of God. Our desperate times remind us how dependent we are on the Lord. We will sink in the ocean of despair unless the Lord intervenes.
In response to Peter's desperate prayer, the Bible says, “And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” Peter was rescued and rebuked. Thankfully, our Lord still rescues us when we are going under. In spite of our fears and doubts, the Lord provides mercy and grace for our times of dark despair.
Notice our Lord's rebuke of Peter, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” We are tempted to join with Jesus in rebuking Peter. Then we remember how often we have doubted ourselves. Notice that Jesus referred to Peter as a man, “... of little faith.” Simon Peter had faith, but it was little. I must confess that this describes me at times, what about you?
Jesus asked Peter, “wherefore didst thou doubt?” In response, it would be easy to point out the boisterous wind. Who wouldn't have been scared? The other disciples stayed in the boat. They didn't even have enough faith to get out of the boat in the first place. But therein lies the problem. Peter believed that, if the Lord permitted him to, he could walk on the water. He did, too. But the wind was already boisterous before Peter even got out of the boat. Conditions did not get worse when he walked on water, he just began focusing on them.
When the winds are contrary, we can either choose to focus on the wind or the One who walks on water. We are living in a society that is facing winds of adversity. Strong opinions exist on a number of subjects. Politics, the economy and news reports can easily overwhelm us. We just need to keep focused on Jesus and stay in His Word.
Yet for those who are sinking, I have good news. Our Lord still rescues those who are going under. If you feel as though circumstances have overwhelmed you, cry out to the same One that Peter prayed to. Our Lord is rich in mercy. Just as He did for Peter, He will pull you out of the boisterous waters you are struggling in.
Ultimately, each one of us will come to the chilly river of death. The winds of uncertainty will be blowing. At that moment, it is good to know that our Lord will be there for us. We won't cross that river alone.
We won't be going under. We'll be going over.
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