From Pastor Rich Cundall

"... they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified."
(John 6:19 NIV)

If you read the full account, you will find that the group of disciples had been battling a storm on a raging sea for a long time. Their boat was taking on water and had begun to sink! Stop for a moment and try to picture the faces of those twelve disciples in the boat. What do you see? Concern? Panic? Horror?

In the semi-darkness of the night allow your gaze to fall upon the one who calls himself "Peter." Whatever your thoughts about this strong, brave, impetuous disciple, you can forget them right now. Look into Peter's eyes, and you won't find a man of conviction. Search his face, and you won't find a brave expression. Later on you will. You'll see his courage in the garden. You'll witness his devotion at Pentecost. You'll behold his faith in the epistles. But not tonight. Look into his eyes tonight, and you'll see fear – a suffocating, heart-racing fear of a man who has no way out. Maybe you can relate. But out of this fear would be born an act of faith; for faith is often the child of fear.

If the sun had been shining and Peter had seen Jesus walking on the water during a calm, peaceful excursion across the lake, do you think that he would have walked out to Him? If the lake had been like glass and the trip pleasant, do you think that Peter would have begged Jesus to take him on a walk across the top of the water? I don't think so either.

But give a man a choice between sure death and a crazy chance, and he'll take the chance…every time. Great acts of faith are seldom born on calm seas. Max Lucado has said, "It wasn't logic that caused Moses to raise his staff on the bank of the Red Sea (Exodus 14:15-16). It wasn't medical research that convinced Naaman to dip seven times in the river (2 Kings 5:13-14). It wasn't common sense that caused Paul to abandon the Law and embrace grace (Romans 3). And it wasn't a confident committee that prayed in a small room in Jerusalem for Peter's release from prison (Acts 6-17). It was a fearful, desperate, band of backed-into-a-corner believers. It was a church with no options. A congregation of have nots pleading for help. And never were they stronger."

Again, faith is often birthed in the delivery room of fear. This morning as I sit at my computer contemplating the scriptural biographies of the apostles, I feel overwhelmingly overshadowed by these great men of faith. Their boldness and faith is impressive. What awesome courage they displayed. Remember how they exuberantly preached the gospel? Thousands were saved and the church was given birth under their great faith. But what I often forget are the biblical chapters of unreserved fear. These great men often displayed fear, fear of failure, fear of death, fear of isolation, fear of a wasted life. They were every bit as human as you and I.

Faith begins when we see God on the mountain and ourselves in the valley, when we know that we are too weak to make the climb. We recognize our need. We understand our inadequacies. We realize that we can never reach God or His standards.

Peter isn't the brightest guy on the planet, but he does understand two important truths: He is sinking and Jesus is not! Therefore he makes a decision about where he'd rather be!

"Lord, if it's you," Peter says, "tell me to come to you on the water." (Matt. 14:28) Something told Peter that the safest place to be in a storm was next to Jesus. I am prone to believe that Peter is not testing Jesus, but that he is pleading with Jesus. Throwing a leg over the side of the boat and walking out onto a stormy sea is not a move of scientific reasoning or logic; it is a move of unequivocal desperation.

Can you see him? Gripped by fear, he grabs the side of the boat. Out goes one leg…and then the other. So far, so good! He takes several steps. He can hardly believe it! It is as if there were rocks just underneath each step. At the end of the ridge of rocks is his friend, Jesus, the One with whom nothing is impossible.

Many of us have done the same kind of thing. We were stranded in a sinking boat of self-sufficiency, good works and pride. And in an hour of deep need we, like Peter, were aware of two facts: We were sinking and Jesus was not. At that point, we realized that the span between Jesus and us is too far for our feet to travel. So we beg for help and scramble out of the condemned craft.

Paul describes this kind of faith in one of his letters:

"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast." (Eph. 2:8-9)

To our wonder and amazement, we walked on water. We were forgiven of the vilest offenses. For the first time we received pure unconditional love. We were given joy, contentment and purpose for living. Today, we are able to look beyond the "natural" apprehension of death and experience supernatural peace and confidence. And get this: God is not only in sight, but He is within reach! We wobble from our boat and draw closer to Him. It is wonderful! We are standing upon His promises! To the carnal mind, this doesn't make a whole lot of sense because, after all, we are certainly not worthy of such a gift! But our eyes were on Him, and He keeps us from sinking!

There are some of you, when reading this article, who will not fully understand what happens to Peter next because once you stepped out, you never looked back. Your gaze was, and has been, permanently fixed on Jesus and your walk above the waves of life has been glorious. I honor you and encourage you to keep your focus on Him.

But others of us have felt the raging waves striking our feet. We have felt the wind blasting our body and stinging our face. We have experienced the gale of doubt, the gust of pride, the blast of pity and the squall of self-sufficiency. And we have looked away and within moments found ourselves gurgling in the water below. Gulping and thrashing, we have fallen into a dark, wet world. Though our eyes are open, we see only blackness. We try to breathe and find no air. We kick and fight our way back to the surface. And with our heads barely above the water, we have to make a decision. Let's let Peter encourage us:

"… And [as he was] beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, 'Lord, save me!' …And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him." (Matt. 14:30-31)

Nearly 2000 years later, He is still in the business of taking hands and redeeming lives. He is waiting for your cry for help.

Dear Lord Jesus, today I cry out for Your help! With Peter, I say, "Lord, save me!" I have taken my focus off of You and experienced the sinking, cold, wet, black reality of life on my own. I am tired of breathing in more water than air. I am weary of being tossed around by the waves of life. I reach out to You today. I ask that you lift me up from the stormy sea and allow my feet to walk with You above the turmoil. I know that the safest place to stand in a storm is on a rock and I want my feet to stand on Jesus, the Rock of my salvation.

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