Walk on the Water

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

Matthew 14:31 (NIV)

Peter didn’t walk on the water just one time. There are many instances recorded in Scripture where Peter walked on the water. Not physically, of course, but metaphorically, Peter walked on the water throughout the Book of Acts and beyond.

● He walked on the water when he preached a single sermon that impacted 3,000 lives on the Day of Pentecost.

● He walked on the water when he looked the lame beggar in the eye and said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”

● He walked on the water when he not only defended the new ministry of the former terrorizer of the church, Saul of Tarsus, and even went so far as to extend the blessed right hand of fellowship to him—recognizing him as Paul, the new creation in Christ.

● He walked on the water when after being warned never again to preach the name of Jesus, he boldly did so—obeying God rather than man.

● He walked on the water when he recognized God’s acceptance of the Gentiles as he visited the house of Cornelius.

Here’s my point: Peter’s first attempt to walk on the water led him to sink. But Jesus’s question to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” set him on the road to an increased faith and even bolder steps of ministry to come.

You may have had a sinking experience like Peter. But you are going to have to step out of your boat of comfort and walk on the water toward God-inspired opportunities again. And I want to ask you, are you going to sink as fast as you sank last time? Or are you going to let the prior sinking motivate you to pray a little harder, read a little longer, and be inspired by what God is doing in your life to let the Holy Spirit shape and form you?

Let your past experiences bolster your faith as you take the next step out onto the water.