Getting Out of The Boat!

So if you know me and follow me in any of my bible study adventures, you would know that one of my favorite stories in the bible is when Peter walked on water. I have read it a thousand times and never once did it come to life for me until I heard it preached on one Sunday morning by a missionary named Zane Perkins. His passion for the story and being able to apply it to my daily life moved me in a new spiritual direction that I had never taken and it left me saying to myself all week " just get out of the boat.". I am sure that people around me thought I was crazy for hearing me say it to myself and often times out loud. But for me it was a reminder of what powerful things my God is and will do in my life. In case you are not familiar with the story I will give a little synopsis of it. Jesus came to Peter and some men in a boat and called Peter to get out of the boat and follow him. So naturally he did, but as he walked on water he became distracted by the things around him and began to sink. He immediately cried out to the Lord to save him and the Lord reached down and grabbed him and returned him to the boat safe from any harm. Sounds simple right, but I think of the amazing amount of faith that Peter had to have to even step foot out of that boat in the first place and when he began to fall his faith saved him again as he called upon the Lord. For he knew that the Lord would indeed come rescue him. WOW! What an example. Some situations this past week had me reflecting on this story and some of the applications it has in our life. How many times have we prayed to the Lord save me, but we do not receive the answers he has given to us? Why can't we get out of the boat and try new things and have full trust in what the Lord is telling us? Why do we let the little things or even the big things distract us so much that we lose our focus? All of these questions I often ponder and have to answer for myself.

So for me when my boat is full, I am going to get out, and follow him. I am going to look for the lifelines and answers he provides for me. I will pray to him and be more like Peter for I trust that even as I am sinking, all I need to do is call upon the Lord and he will immediately pull me back up and put me back on solid ground! Will you get out of the boat?