“But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’”-Matthew 14:27
Let’s journey back to the story I blogged about last
week. The disciples had found themselves
in a wind and wave tossed boat with what they thought was a ghost walking on
the water straight for them. Could you
imagine the fear that must have been welling up within them? Yet, all Jesus had to say was, “It is I.
Don’t be afraid,” and there goes Peter making the offer to walk out on the
water with Him.
“It is I.” That’s it.
Jesus didn’t have to go through a long list of signs and wonders He had
performed to convince Peter that He could be trusted. Less than 10 words and Peter was convinced
enough to say, “If it is you, Lord, call me out on the water with you.” Peter knew His Lord. He not only knew enough about Him to know He
could be trusted, He had experienced Him.
Truly experiencing God leads us to shake off the shackles of fear and step out in faith.
For the longest time, any time God would call me to step out
in faith, He would have to first go through a list of all He had done in my
life and all He is capable of doing. I
would go through a list of all the reasons I couldn't do it, mostly fears, but
He would counter each one with, “Yes, but it is I…” Today, I see a difference. It doesn't take Him nearly as long to
convince me anymore, and that is a result of experiencing who He is in my walk
with Him. Step by step I am discovering that He is who He says He is, and He can be trusted!
I want every step I take to say, “I believe that God is who
He says He is.” Are you with me, girls? When
Jesus calls me out, I want “It is I. Don’t be afraid,” to be enough to shed my
fear and lead me onto the waters. I
refuse to be weighed down by my fears.
God is who He says He is and I want the way I live my life to show that
I believe it!
Lord, I am standing at
the edge of my boat, looking into the eyes of you, my King. Lord, help me to remember who you
are. When you say “It is I” bring to
mind all that you are. Help me to
remember all the ways you have taught me that you are who you say you are so
that when you call me out, my faith in you will surely hold me up. Thank you, Lord, for all that you are. You amaze me.
I trust you, Jesus. I love you, Amen.
