Taken in the Vatican Museum by Martha McDuff Wiggins, 2012
“But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take courage; it is I; do not be afraid.’ 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. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are certainly God’s Son!” Matthew 14:24-33
In this gospel I am always struck by the fact that Peter actually got out of the boat! Most of us would be frozen with fear. Imagine the wind whipping around, waves tossing the boat about, and someone calls to you to come on out of the boat and walk on the water! Most of us would consider Peter either brave or stupid, or both. In reality it was neither. He was obediently faithful.
For me the real lesson in this Gospel has to do with going the distance. There are many times in our lives where we might be willing to take a chance and step out of the boat. We might be willing to try something new, but like Peter, at the first sign of trouble we flounder crying out for help. Thankfully for us, God is always at the ready to rescue us. We soon find that with Him we can go the distance. When we are obediently faithful to His commands the winds calm, the trouble subsides, and we then recognize Him as Our Savior and Lord.
Let us each strive to be faithfully obedient, to go the distance with Jesus.
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