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day 13

IF YOU SAY GO

MATTHEW 14:28-29 (NASB)
Peter said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus.

daily devotional

It was Robert McCheyne who once said: “When the voice of Christ speaks through the Word, then you will arise, and leave all, and follow Him.” Have you ever read this story of Peter walking on the water and thought, “What was Pete thinking? What was going through his mind to think that he could walk on water if Jesus commanded him?"

 

Could it have been the time he spent with Jesus?

Could it have been his understanding of Jesus as a person, a teacher, a leader, and a friend?

Could it have been his revelation of who Jesus was, and the knowledge that if Jesus commanded anything, that it would be done?

 

We are so blessed today to have the Scripture so that we can know who He is and what He can do.

 

We can read the stories, like that of David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17) or like Daniel in the Lion’s Den (Daniel 6). We can read of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being thrown in the fire and the fire not harming them in any way (Daniel 3). The words on the page can powerfully inspire us and move us emotionally. Not only that, but God has provided His Spirit to us so that the words on the page can be empowered by His Spirit to move us spiritually and physically as well.  

 

God’s Spirit in us gives us access, allowing us to spend time with Him, at any time.  God’s Spirit in us allows us to gain understanding of Who Jesus is to us, the person, the teacher, the leader, the friend, but most importantly, the Lord! God’s Spirit in us allows us to realize that if Jesus commands anything, it will be done, bringing everything deemed impossible into the realm of possibility.

 

What I love about Peter in this situation is not only did he have the faith to step out of the boat, but he had the faith to look at the impossible and know that if Jesus commanded him to get out of the boat, he could.  Peter’s faith in Jesus initiated this miracle from Jesus.  He waited for the command of the Lord, but it was him who initiated the first step.

 

God instilled in all of us the desire to do great things. When children are asked what they want to be when they grow up, the answer is never an insignificant position. It is most always someone, or something, that will be of great impact to the world or mankind.  Why is this? I believe it is because God placed in all of us the innate belief for doing great things. Even more than that, children also tend to have the idealistic faith that nothing is impossible.

 

Could it be possible that many times we stifle the possibility of the impossible simply because we are resistantly slow to take a step of faith? Could it be possible that the only thing hindering us from seeing the miraculous in our lives is our inability to move toward what God is calling us to?

 

No matter how impossible it may seem, if God calls us to go, may we quickly, willingly, and obediently step out in faith, with zero hesitation.

“If You Want to Walk on the Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat.”

- John Ortberg

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