Isn’t it amazing how God can take something you have seen or heard repeatedly and out of nowhere give you a whole new perspective on it? This most recently happened to me at a women’s retreat this summer. During one of the worship sessions we sang a song I was very familiar with called “No Longer Slaves”. As we were singing, I was struck by a lyric I have sung countless times before: “You split the sea so I can walk right through it.” Even though this is a direct reference to Exodus, when God splits the Red Sea so the Israelites can escape the Egyptians, I was instead reminded of a story in the New Testament. In the book of Matthew, the disciples are caught in a boat in the middle of a violent storm with strong winds, heavy rain and loud claps of thunder. After battling the storm for many hours, they spotted a figure walking on the water toward them. When the disciples realized it was Jesus walking towards them, Peter called out to him, “If it is You, tell me to come to You”. Jesus answered, “Yes; come.”

Now, I would like to think that Peter took that first step with all the confidence in the world, and if he kept his eyes focused on Jesus, Peter would have been able to walk on the water right through the storm. But, it is not long before his focus shifts away from Jesus and onto the raging wind and waves. Peter began to sink beneath the waves.

I believe that during our individual walks with Jesus, we have all been Peter in this story. We have heard the call from Jesus to step into our purpose, get involved at a church, or most importantly, accept Jesus and follow Him. At first, we are on fire for God and we boldly take those steps of faith towards Jesus. But before long we start to hear the noises of the world. Whether it be hardships we face, fear of volatility in our society, or simply old habits starting to creep back into our lives, we can start to feel distanced from God. We may start to believe the lies that we are not good enough or that we can never be useful to God again.

The good news is there is a second part of the story. Jesus comes to Peter and pulls him out from under the waves and puts him back in the boat. Later, God used Peter to preach a sermon during Pentecost that added three thousand believers to the church. Like Peter, Jesus is there to pull us out of the waves and place us back on the right path. God will continue to use us for his mission and there is nothing we are able to do to stop God’s love for us. So, if the wind and waves are raging around you, keep your eyes focused on Jesus, continue to be bold in your faith, and have the courage to take the first step out of the boat.