Winds of Faith
Read This Week: Matthew 14
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” – Matthew 14:28-33 NIV
Matthew 14 shows us a pivotal moment where Peter and the disciples face some questions about their faith. They were in a boat without Jesus, and the wind picks up on the lake and begins to stir the waves. Jesus then walks out to the disciples on the water, and it terrifies them as they think they’re looking at a ghost. But the Lord assures them of his presence by identifying Himself, yet this does not calm their fear.
Peter then asks Jesus to perform an additional miracle to prove his identity. He says in verse 28: “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” Peter was asking God to prove he is God. He wanted him to identify himself as the Almighty by doing another miracle outside of walking on water. He called out to Jesus to confirm his identity by causing him to do something he could not do if the Lord were not there.
We tend to do the same things. We seem to want God to do something tangible or miraculous in our lives to prove Himself to us, but He often wants to do something miraculous in us that builds our faith. We want the miracles of life and it causes us to take our eyes off the One who provides them. Verse 30 illustrates this:
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
Like Peter and the disciples, God allows us to go through moments and seasons that are not solved by things we can see but by increasing our faith in the unseen. Sometimes we need to grow in our faith in the middle of the storm and not doubt God’s provision for our lives.
We need the winds of faith, not the winds of convenience or comfort. The winds of faith are unique because they come in the middle of the struggle, in the middle of hurt, fatigue, and exhaustion. Unlike instant gratification, the winds of faith give us the strength to press on and the resilience to face the next challenge.
We are resilient and powerful through faith in Jesus. There is so much strength within us through the power of the Holy Spirit. And when we trust Him and are propelled by the winds of faith and not doubt, our lives are energized and empowered to release the potential inside to stand up, walk on the troubled waters of life, and be successful. The winds of faith can take us further than we ever thought we could go and help us realize that God is exactly who He said He was all along.
Matthew 14:13-14 says, When Jesus heard about John, He left there privately in a boat and went to a secluded place. But when the crowds heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt [profound] compassion for them and healed their sick.
Even is the midst of pain, Jesus’ heart was so sad hearing the bad news about His cousin. He wanted to be alone. I know when a loved one has gone to heaven it’s really hard. But Jesus in the midst of His heart-hurting had compassion for the people and healed them.
I want to be more and more like Jesus. I want to hear my Father’s voice to help others through Him. I am thankful to God for showing us Jesus’ heart of compassion.
This is so good, Heidi. I love the truth you pulled out from this passage about God’s heart of compassion seen in the person of Jesus and His ministry on earth. The kind of love, empathy, goodness, and compassion that Jesus showed and expressed can never be understated and should be desired in our lives.
May we all echo and affirm your prayer and proclamation for our hearts and ministries: I want to be more and more like Jesus. I want to hear my Father’s voice to help others through Him. I am thankful to God for showing us Jesus’ heart of compassion.
Aw, thank you, Jason. I love your heart, especially how you encourage us. You’re the best. I know you make our Father’s heart blessed by all you do and say. Thank you so much!
Thank you so much, Heidi, for the kind encouragement and words. They mean so much. It is an honor to minister to and be ministered to by you all. The blessing is all mine. You guys are wonderful!
This week I have a song from Matthew 14 called “Trusting in You”:
I want to run to you, I want to run to you
I want to run into your arms
Nothing can hurt me even from my past
Trusting in you, my lord, trusting in you
Having courage as you stand with me
Just knowing your strong hands are pulling me near
You are my Savior, my King, I am trusting in you
Your love and kindness gives me courage
I’m not afraid
I want to run to you, I want to run to you
I want to run into your arms every day. Amen.
I feel blessed and know God loves us when we run to Him. He never will turn away. It’s about our trust in Him. Thank you, Lord.
This is so beautiful and powerful, Alma. This one touched me deeply. These were my favorite lyrics:
I want to run into your arms
Nothing can hurt me even from my past
You are my Savior, my King, I am trusting in you
Your love and kindness gives me courage
I’m not afraid.
I love the imagery of God’s love and protection and nothing being able to hurt us even the things of our past that haunt and try to accuse us. But our Savior gives us the courage and helps us to not be afraid. What a Savior he is. Thank you for reminding us of who He is.
Your song brought to my recollection of an Alvin Slaughter song called “Lord, I Run to You”:
Lord I run to You
No one else will do
Lord in troubled times I will run straight to You
Though my heart and flesh may fail
You’re my very present help
My tower of strength
My portion evermore
Lord I run to You
No one else will do
Lord, You said we’d face trouble pain, and fears
But to be of good cheer be of good cheer
For You have overcome the world.
Thank you, Jason. I love the way that we get to minister. You always are an encourager and I hope you have a blessed day.
Thank you, Alma. You are a constant blessing to me. It is a joy and privilege to minister to you. Have a wonderful day and weekend!
This is what I got from God in Matthew 14: “It is easier to have faith when you think you know how I might provide for you, but I can provide in wonderfully unexpected ways. If you expect less, you are trying to limit what I can do for you. You should thank me for, and wisely use what I give you. Don’t waste what I give you.
You are to put away fear and trust Me. At times you worry about problems that are not nearly as bad as you think. Your mind is afraid because you make something bigger or worse than it really is. Remember I will provide a greater solution. Sometimes what hurts you is having too little faith. Your faith can be too much affected by your surroundings and your circumstances.
If you want your faith to get stronger, obey the word of Jesus and draw near to Him. If it is right to trust Jesus, then trust Him altogether. Nothing is too difficult that he can’t handle.”
What this said to me, I need to continue to seek Jesus first. I need to trust Him with my problems and quit trying to snatch them back. He says if I can give Him my burdens He will give me rest. I need to quit building my problems up in my mind, and replace that fear with trust.
I love this commentary on Matthew 14, Kathy. The different nuances of faith and trusting God that you address are so helpful for the Christian walk and how we relate to God. This part stood out:
If you expect less, you are trying to limit what I can do for you. You should thank me for, and wisely use what I give you.
I think we often forget and underestimate the role that faith and unbelief play in our lives and in the outlook of what God can do in and through our lives. As you point out, we should seek God in faith with grateful hearts and be obedient to what He is calling us to do with joy, peace, and hope. We should be expectant of great things in faith because we serve a great God who is faithful to us.