God of Life, you have been gracious to me this day. With heart and mind and soul, I thank you. Night has come and I am weary. Deliver me into your peace. You continue to hold us all in your steadfast love. I pray for those I love, for people in difficulty around the world, and for your creation so often misused. Even as I sleep, I trust in you. Deliver me from harm. Restore my body, mind, and soul, that I may rise and praise you again. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
33 Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!
Praise befits the upright.
2 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre;
make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!
3 Sing to him a new song;
play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
4 For the word of the Lord is upright,
and all his work is done in faithfulness.
5 He loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
7 He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;
he puts the deeps in storehouses.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.
“They saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid” (John 6:19)
The disciples were seasoned fishermen. They had lived on the sea and had seen plenty of its wild storms. So they knew what to do when a storm broke out in today’s Gospel lesson. They could take turns rowing to conserve their strength. Or maybe they could just turn back and not fight the winds. The storm wasn’t a problem. But when they saw Jesus walking on the wild waters – that was a scary sight!
Why? It’s hard to say. But it certainly seemed that they were starting to realize that he was more than just a miracle worker, more than just a gifted teacher. They probably weren’t expecting Jesus to intervene during the storm because he had stayed behind to pray. Seeing him walk on the water and then miraculously deliver them to the other side of the lake shook them up. They had come face-to-face with Jesus’ divine power over the elements.
Jesus knew that his disciples were more than capable of handling the storm. But he wanted them to understand something new about who he was. He wanted to show them that he cared about every situation in their lives – even the ones they thought they could handle on their own! So he came walking on the water as proof of his power, and he brought them to shore as proof of his care for them.
Notice that Jesus told the disciples, “It is I. Do not be afraid” (John 6:20). He didn’t want to scare them or reprimand them for their unbelief. He wanted to calm their fears. He wanted them to know him better so that they could trust him more deeply.
Isn’t Jesus incredible? His love goes far beyond just forgiving us for our sins. He loves us so much that he wants to be involved in every facet of our lives. He doesn’t want to be just our spiritual repairman who helps us out of impossible situations. He wants to be a friend as well – someone who shares all the ups and downs of life with us. What an amazing Savior!
Jesus, help me to see that you are always with me. Let me know the joy of your presence today. Amen.
wau
Andy
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