Floating Stones

"But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

“Come,” he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.
“You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

-Matthew 14:27-31

We can only imagine what was going through Peter’s mind as he walked on water. If ever there was a case to be made for faith, this was it. Peter’s utter reliance upon God enabled him to place footstep after footstep on malleable, liquid water. By all natural, human laws this was not possible, it couldnt be possible! And yet here Peter was walking across the sea amidst a particularly violent storm with his Lord directly in front of him. Talk about a surreal experience!

When Jesus came across the fisherman Simon, his very first action was to change his name to Peter (or Cephas) which means rock. By faith alone Peter, a rock, floated on the surface of the waters as he walked towards his savior. What an amazing moment- Peters faith seemed to know no bounds.

But then a sick feeling took hold of him- his stomach began to turn in knots as doubt invaded. As Peter began to look about him, his complete and utter faith in his Lord was broken and he began to sink. Fear took hold of his entire soul as the water licked up at his feet and began to pull him underneath its dark surface. Peter began to rationalize, to apply human rules to a situation in which they did not apply. Peter, the rock of Christ, was sinking quickly and desperately needed help. As he began to slip beneath the icy waters he shouted to the only one he knew could save him, his Lord. Jesus immediately responded to his plea by plucking him from the waters that threatened to consume him…

The keeping of our faith is a constant struggle my friends! The Lord has been teaching me this in my own life these last few weeks. Its easy to have faith when we become accustomed to walking on water. We take for granted the daily miracles that God provides; we forget that we are merely floating stones. Our sinful nature and actions should have left us condemned unto eternal death long ago, yet Christ in his mercy saw fit to uphold us in his hands.

God reminds of us of this in times of trial and temptation. As our world crashes and burns around us, we become like Peter- frantic, sick to our stomachs, afraid to the utmost of what might happen. Worry invades and we begin to despair. Amidst tribulation pretenses are laid bare and we are forced to come to grips with reality. We exist and breathe ONLY because God saw fit for it to be so in his perfect will. In light of this realization, we should react as Peter did. We should shout to him, “Lord, save me!”

I would also go as far as to say that these trials we face in life are a necessary part of our Christian walk. Jesus himself said, “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” (John 12:24-28). The Lord uses our hour of weakness to glorify his name- and what higher calling is there? In our weakness, he is made perfectly known! We are called to face these troubles head on and actively consider how we might grow our faith and increase our reliance upon him. What a wonderful God we serve!

Though we face a great many ugly things in this world, it is comforting to know that Jesus will always be there waiting to pluck us from the depths in our time of need. When necessary trials descend upon us, let us look to the face of God and praise his name. Let us be stones that float upon a tried and tested faith in Christ Jesus.

Scripture For Thought…

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”

-James 1:2-6

“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

-2 Corinthians 12:9