Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 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. 30 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?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:22-33 NIV
I find this story very rich in lessons which we can apply during this pandemic. First, Jesus left the disciples in the boat to go to the mountainside to pray. I believe that He prayed that the disciples may have strong faith, because he left them in the boat that is buffeted by the wind. The bible says that Jesus is interceding for us at the right hand of the Father. Let us be assured that He did not leave alone in a storm, but He continually intercedes for us during this trying times.
Secondly, the disciples thought He was a ghost. My take is that in the midst of the storm and rough waters, they became so fearful, that they cannot even recognize the Lord. When our thoughts become so filled with fear instead of faith, we don’t see the truth. Fear can make our worst imagination appear real. During this pandemic, what we need is to dig deeper and meditate on the word and listen to the Holy Spirit.
Third, out of those who were in the boat, it was only Peter who wanted to brave the raging waters to come to Jesus. What? Walk on the raging waters? I believe that we are in the midst of an unfamiliar place and we don’t know when the raging storm will end. Peter showed us how to experience the power of God in the midst of the crisis. In all of these, we can see Jesus, walking in the midst of the storm and bidding us to come to Him.
We can walk on water. Fight fear with faith by dwelling on the word of God. See God as Someone bidding you to come to Him in the midst of the storm and walk on the water amidst the stormy seas. This story is a story of God’s power manifested because somebody named Peter was willing to get out of his comfort zone and keep on following Jesus in the midst of the storm.
Boni de Jesus 