As I mentioned in my launch post on Monday, I’m planning to continue my “Seek the things above” series on Wednesdays, which I started last week. I generally read my Bible everyday, but I’m trying to do better about spending more time actually *studying* my Bible, not just reading it. Writing these posts will be helpful to me to have a specific goal of study, and hopefully will be helpful to others. I welcome comments of course, but if you ever have a question or disagreement that you don’t feel comfortable posting in the comments, please feel free to drop me an email, I’m more than happy to talk with you! :)

This week, it’s some simple thoughts on the walking on the water. And by simple I don’t mean easy-unimporant-simple. I mean straight-forward-getting-down-to-basics-and-fundamentals simple. Here is the account as recorded in Matthew 14:

Generally, I think, when we remember about the account of Jesus walking on the water we remember that Jesus walked on the water, and that when Peter tried, he sank. But an important thing happened in verse 29 — “Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water”

It must have taken a lot of guts to get out of that boat. I think if I had been there and Jesus had told me to get out, I would have done it, but that if the Lord wasn’t asking me to get out, I would have happily stayed in the boat. Peter didn’t do that. He saw his Lord walking on the water, and wanted to go to him – and requested to come out to him. He had faith at that point that Jesus could make it happen. And it did happen: Peter walked on the water.

But then comes the part we remember well – Peter began to sink.

What changed? First Peter was walking on the water, then he was sinking. Nothing changed as far as God’s power. The thing that changed was Peter’s focus. And, as an result, his faith failed.

When Peter asked to come out onto the water and he began to walk on the water, he was focused on going to his Lord. But what does it say right before he began to sink? “When he saw the wind, he was afraid.” When Peter lost sight of his goal, and started focusing on all the immediate problems around him (the wind and the waves) that is when he began to sink.

And so it is with us in our lives. When we focus on the goal, we make progress toward it. But when we lose sight of our eternal goal, and instead get caught up in all the problems and concerns of this life, that is when we begin to sink.

I find this passage so encouraging to keep my eyes on Jesus, and not lose sight of the goal.
What are your thoughts?

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