Out on the Waters

But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” Matthew 14:30 NKJV

Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that God’s call to live by faith  is His call for us to come out on the waters. Walking daily in such a life is more than challenging, it is overwhelming. Like Peter, we are sometimes overwhelmed by wind and waves and most of us aren’t ready to walk on water even on a calm night!

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But the call of Jesus as it echoes out over our dark waters carries with it a guarantee. Hearing His voice means that He is  out there waiting for us as even if we start to sink on our way to Him. Our assurance is that our way is not just about difficulty, it is about the miracle of God’s Son. With His call comes His promise, to reach down and pull us out of the waters so we can walk with Him.

And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”   Matthew 14:31 NKJV

Coming to the Red Sea

Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” Exodus 14:13-14

One of my professors at Bible college often said that the Christian life wasn’t hard to live, it was impossible! In our lives the Red Sea represents that place of impossibility.

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It is impossible for us to become Christians, impossible to grow in our faith and impossible to accomplish anything without the miraculous grace of God. The story of Moses and the children of Israel leave us an encouraging example of how God chose to work by His miracle grace. Maybe you are in an impossible situation or one is looming on your horizon like a dark cloud. It is like facing the Red Sea with the sound of your enemies at your back. While it is quite natural to feel a sense of panic, but in that in that moment remind yourself that God Himself has led you to that shore. One of the greatest fears we face is the fear of the unknown. We can’t imagine how our life will be if x, y or z happens. But God specializes in doing his best work when we don’t understand. Let your faith work in the same way that you welcome anesthesia before a surgery. Since you will be asleep your confidence doesn’t lie in your ability to direct the surgeon’s hands but in the confidence that he is operating for your good. You will never have a greater opportunity to grow in your trust towards God. Nothing is by chance in the battle you are in. You haven’t taken a wrong turn and this is not a dead-end. In fact you are in exactly the right place. God has brought you to your own Red Sea. Stand strong with expectancy and you will discover what only God can do next!

 

Our Chief Editor

Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2 NKJV

Today I have small confession to make. I love to write but I hate to edit! I still remember the editing of Sister Mary Friel in my Child Psychology class. If she found a single error on our daily writing assignment she would give it a big red check mark and return our paper with a provisional F. If we corrected and resubmitted our work by the following class our grade would be redone: if not the failing grade became ours!

This method led me to carefully inspect my work. I checked for spelling errors, footnote placement and grammatical nuance. Seeing the large red slashes across my writing bruised my ego but it trained me to become a better writer.

I love the quote from Hebrew about Jesus being the author and finisher of our faith. However Jesus also wants to become the Senior editor of our hearts. He is waiting for us to submit our plans for final revisions to Him. If this morning we put our plans on His desk, He promises to lovingly correct us and help us turn in an A paper for the day!

Father before I begin this morning, I confess to you my inability to write a single line without your editorial assistance. Help me to be honest with others. Correct my easy tendency to self-serving motivations. Teach me how to use words as a healing balm not a knife of sarcasm that cuts with a smile. Help me to remember that the only article worth publishing today is the Good News of Salvation and hope through the cross. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen

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