Stepping out of the boat the first time

Have you ever felt like God was leading you to do something, but you needed reassurance over and over... and over... and over that it was really the Lord calling you?  I had an experience like that just last week.  God spoke very clearly to me about something and has confirmed it several times, but I continued to cry out to be sure that it was truly Him. 

 

You know, Gideon had the same problem (which makes me feel a little better about myself). God spoke to Gideon and said "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?" (Judges 6:14)  Well, Gideon needed a little reassuring (as we all do sometimes) that it was really God speaking to Him.  So he asks for a sign, which God gives.  However, turn the page and Gideon asks for a sign again, not once, but twice! (Judges 6:36-40)  

Now, I'm not blaming Gideon, because I can totally relate.  However, John 10:4-5 says "sheep follow [the Shepherd] because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."  So, what's my stinking problem?

God really hammered this home to me yesterday as I was reading the story of Jesus walking on the water. (Matt. 14:22-33)  Now, we've all heard this story a thousand times before and so the idea of Jesus walking across the water is not foreign to us.  But think about how the disciples felt.  Here they are in a boat in the middle of the Sea of Galilee, minding their own business and they are thrust into this terrifying situation of what they thought was a ghost walking toward them.  

That's kind of how I felt last week when God spoke to me.  Here I am just doing my thing and the Lord brings something to my attention and asks me to respond in a totally life-changing way.  I was a little blindsided to say the least!  So, I spent the next week struggling with God to make sure that I had truly heard His voice.  

But when I read this passage, I saw it in a totally different way than I ever had before.  This time, I didn't notice as much that Jesus was walking on the water, but the way that Peter responds to him. When Jesus realizes that they are terrified, he tells them not to fear because it's just him. (vs. 27) Well, Peter (being like most of us) wants to make sure that it's really Jesus, so he throws out something to get a little reassurance.  "Lord, if it's you, tell me to come to you on the water." (vs. 28)  And Jesus tells him to come on.  Here is the amazing part.  Peter does not pause and say "Wait a minute, how do I really know it's you, Jesus?"  He doesn't turn around to the other disciples and say "Hey guys, do you think that is really Jesus out there?"  He immediately "got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus." (vs. 29)  Whoa, hold the phone!  What a novel idea!

Now to be honest, life was not all rosy and wonderful once Peter stepped out of the boat.  Once he gets on the water, the reality of the wind and the waves starts to intrude into this moment between him and Jesus.  Next thing you know, Peter is sinking even though Jesus obviously called him out of the boat.  Hmmm... sound familiar?  

If that was the end of the story, we'd never want to answer God's call because nobody wants to take a leap and then sink.  But the cool thing is that when Peter started to sink, "Jesus IMMEDIATELY reached out his hand and caught him." (vs. 31, emphasis mine). 

So, what's the moral of the story?  If we truly belong to God, we know His voice.  If we know His voice, then we should recognize it when He calls.  If we recognize Him when He calls, then we should step out in faith.  When we step out in faith, He is there to keep us from sinking.  Thanks, Lord.  Point taken.

Brandy