Preface
Without question we are living in very uncertain times. It seems that ‘end-time’ Bible prophesies are rolling in on us at an accelerating rate. As these changes are gradually overtaking us, people don’t know from one day to the next if they can maintain their normal lifestyle. Many, if not all of the systems which this world offered us yesterday guaranteeing our security and a bright future are now being violently shaken on a global scale. Meanwhile our hope and trust is being put in our most brilliant thinkers who continually press forward for answers, pulling technological wonders out of the hat which seem to keep us just one step ahead of an ever more rapidly encroaching threat of some sort of global disaster.
Christians are not immune to this growing turbulence which threatens our homes, jobs, schools, churches, and nation. But perhaps most distressing is how it is assaulting our personal call and ability to serve the Lord Jesus.
This rising storm is forcing us to make choices like never before; to choose between remaining faithfully obedient to the mission of our Lord Jesus with perhaps greater cost to our personal lives and the natural instinctive urges to turn our full attention to maintaining our own personal well-being, comfortable lifestyle, and ultimately, our very survival.
Jesus has given us a very clear illustration on how his followers can, not only survive troubled times, but rise above them and all the while continue to press forward in obedience in the midst of great crisis and loss. It is illustrated in the story of how his disciples faced a traumatic night on a stormy sea.
I’d like to share with you my insights to this amazing story with hopes that it will be as much of an encouragement to you as it has been for me.
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Exhausted, Peter clung to the trembling mast where the tattered remnants of the sail whipped about in the violent wind. His hope was quickly fading as an army of waves marched relentlessly across the bow of the handsome boat they had borrowed for the journey. Occasionally, between flashes of lightning, he could catch a glimpse of his eleven companions who, beyond the point of exhaustion, alternately continued their frantic rowing and bailing of water from the slowly floundering boat.
The old boat had looked so beautiful just a few hours earlier as it calmly rested against the shore under a spectacular sunset near the village of Bethsaida. It had faithfully carried its human cargo across the Sea of Galilee for the past dozen years or more and Peter hadn't given a second thought that it would be just as reliable on their short journey this peaceful evening as well. But this night had turned out to be full of surprises.
The violence of the storm that had rushed in on them had caught them totally off guard. Though many of the men in the boat were fishermen, well acquainted with the various moods of this temperamental body of water, their experience was not going to be enough to get them through this night of trial. As reliable a boat as it was and experienced as the men were, all were destined for loss this night. And as for the simple mission that Jesus had sent them on, it would take them to the very edge of eternity...and back.
Between flashes of lightning Peter took in the scene around him. John and James had been working the oars for the past hour. He knew that their hands, once heavily calloused by years of laboring in the fishing trade, would be severely blistered now as they had softened from months of pursuing the 'new life' Jesus had called them to. Phillip, ever enthusiastic, yet unskilled, had lost one of the spare oars in his effort to help advance their cause against the blasting wind. Now chastened, he diligently bailed water from the ever flooding boat while Andrew, Peter’s brother, attempted to help keep the boat from capsizing by heading it into the waves with the other spare oar. Several others had given themselves to frantic praying for which Peter, though grateful, had little hope of actually getting any real answer.
Peter wiped the rain from his troubled face as he accepted the inevitable outcome of their predicament. Why had Jesus sent them out on the sea this night when certainly he knew all along that a violent storm was brewing? After all, he knew everything! He was God, wasn't he? Where was his love in all this? What was the point of it?
Jesus had told his disciples, “Go to the other side of the lake,” and though it had been somewhat unexpected for Jesus to remain behind while sending them out on their own like this, Jesus had only recently sent the disciples out on their own in teams of two, having given them authority and the mission to represent him from village to village by preaching that people must repent. To drive home the truth of this message, Jesus gave them added supernatural power for driving out demons, and healing the sick. Experience had taught Peter that with Jesus, it was not his job to question, but to simply obey.
Earlier in the evening when Jesus had told them to sail ahead to Gennesaret, a relatively short seven mile journey, Peter had been delighted for this new opportunity to once again prove himself capable and faithful. It was a character trait that he was proud of, but now because of his radical loyalty and blind obedience they were in a struggle for their lives.
For a fleeting moment Peter let his mind flash back to earlier events of the day when he and his companions had become caught up in one of the most amazing miracles in their lives. By their own hands they had fed an enormous crowd of hungry people, all from just a few pieces of bread and fish! He recalled the sensation as the bread materialized in the palm of his hand while distributing it among the thousands. Of course he really had nothing to do with the miracle; God's Presence and power had overtaken in a small act of obedience. All he was required to do was to obey what Jesus had told him to do. And just look at the results of that simple obedience! Once again he had seen first-hand God’s incredibly great power! This amazing power had worked through him and his companions. How? He didn't understand. But it had made him feel special, important …more important than other people. A feeling that felt good ...sort of.
A twinge of guilt that Peter had been ignoring for months once again pricked his conscience. He had become prideful of something that made him look important but that he didn't really own. He realized it, but once again forced his thoughts away from the revelation of his sin.
“Great power,” Peter muttered against the roar of the wind and crashing thunder as he looked down at the soggy ruined remains of miracle bread from one of the twelve baskets of left-over's that had earlier been stowed on board but had now overturned. Broken loaves of ‘heavenly’ bread now floated useless in water around his legs. “So much for obedience”, he thought. What did it matter now? Their situation was indeed critical but the worst thing was, Jesus was not with them.
The disciples certainly could have turned back to the shore where they had started from earlier when the opposing winds had begun to strengthen. That was where Jesus was and by now they could have been sleeping safely around a warm fire …had Peter not been so stubborn. But he had insisted, “Jesus told us to go to the other side of the lake, and so that is where we must go.”
Of the twelve disciples Peter was considered the most experienced fisherman and usually was given full command of the boat when it came to traveling on the sea. From this position of authority Peter had boldly argued against the fears and reasoning of the others who had urged a quick retreat back towards safety as the storm had rushed in on them. But Peter had religiously quoted the familiar scripture, “To obey is better than sacrifice” to the others as the storm had reached alarming intensity. Silenced and temporarily convinced by those words, they had put their confidence in Peter's good judgment, and with faces hard into the opposing wind and with back and arms straining at the oars, they had determined at all cost to fulfill the mission.
But now, after many hours of struggle and making no progress, all hope had drained away and along with it, their strength. The boat which had seemed so trustworthy was doomed, and they along with it. There was nothing left to do or say to somehow save themselves. Even attempting to turn the boat around now was out of the question as it would certainly end up rolling over in the process. Their combined experience was worthless in dealing with this kind of unanticipated dilemma.
“So this is how it's all going to end,” Peter thought as he resigned himself at last to their certain watery fate. He lifted his weary eyes just as another brilliant flash of lightning pierced the blackness, immediately followed by an angry tantrum of thunder. Blinded by the momentary scene which was frozen onto his troubled mind, his heart skipped a beat. What had he just seen? It couldn't be! He must be having delusions, he reasoned. Perhaps the brilliance of the lightning combined with exhaustion and hunger was playing tricks. Pulling back wet hair that had fallen across his eyes and squinting, Peter readied himself for the next lightning flash. When it came a short moment later it revealed his worst nightmare! How could it get any worse then it already was? Yet he saw it again as the next bolt of lightning tore open the night sky and again in the next. What he saw was soon confirmed by terrified shrieks from several of his companions who undoubtedly were seeing the same thing!
With the hammering of the thunder a new fear hammered into Peter's soul. He had just seen the Angel of Death! There was no question about it. For out on the thrashing waves walked a ghostly apparition. It looked human! But it couldn't be. Impossible! There was only one explanation. It was a ghost. He had heard stories that had given him nightmares about this since he was a young boy when the neighborhood teenagers swapped tales late into the warm summer nights under a large tree near his home. And now he believed. Their time had come! The boat was about to sink, they were about to die and the dreaded Angel of Death, eager to embrace their wicked souls, was lurking nearby.
Jesus must have known all along, Peter reasoned! He must have seen into their hearts and knew just how wicked they really were; how much they had pretended in front of Jesus; pretending to love, to care, to believe. Hypocrite! The word seared Peter’s soul. Judgment time had come, and the pride he had tried so carefully to conceal demanded justice. Peter knew it was true and how hard he had tried to hide it. They must have pushed Jesus to his limit. This storm was Jesus’ way of getting rid of them! Peter now fully understood! This was judgment time and the evil one was just a short distance away ready to usher them into eternal punishment!
Peter moaned in terror. If only Jesus was here. He would explain it all…
As Peter watched the ghostly apparition between the flashes of lightning, he realized that the figure was indeed walking, not towards them as he had first supposed, but rather in the direction that they were also attempting to go. Suddenly a new thought struck Peter. Perhaps it wasn't the Death Angel. Perhaps it was an angel from God, sent to encourage them and show them the way to go! Yet as Peter watched, the figure continued to pass on by their sinking boat as though they didn’t even exist, heading off as it were towards the far distant shore. It didn't make any sense at all. Yet there was something familiar about the apparition that made Peter shiver. Something seemed to beckon. Something beyond human logic that inspired the tiniest spark of hope again. Something…
Peter tried to hush his terrified companions who had not noticed that the figure now seemed to be moving away from them. But as they continued to cry out, their voices carried across the waves by the wind and finally reached the ears of the 'ghost'. It turned, facing them as if seeing them for the first time. And then with a voice that penetrated the cries of the disciples and the roar of the wind and waves, called out: “Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.”
Never had more comforting and reassuring words been spoken! At the peak of crisis and in the briefest fragment of a moment Peter understood. It was Jesus! It really is Jesus! He had known their situation all along and now He had come. With that realization, confidence was restored. Boldness returned and without a second thought Peter dared to act on the implications of what was being revealed in his heart. Since it really is Jesus, he reasoned, and since He is really heading for the far shore, then we can still fulfill the mission He sent us on. He's showing us that there are other ways to reach our goal! We can still obey and reach the far shore. But to do so, we're going to have to get out of this boat! The only place this boat is going is …down! And I, for one, am not going to go with it!
With nothing left to lose, Peter raised his voice against the winds and all his fears, and called out with all the strength in his tired body. “Jesus?” he shouted. “Jesus, is that really you out there? If it is, call me to come to you on the water.” And then, from the distance he heard the simple invitation. “Come”, Jesus called. It was just one word, but it was clear and familiar. It was that same voice that had called him a couple of years earlier, “Come, follow me.” It was that same voice that had started him on this adventure of a lifetime and inspired such radical dedication to obedience. Now it beckoned again and once again he found himself being called to leave the security of what he was so familiar with.
The desire to be found faithful to the mission Jesus had earlier given beckoned again. He knew if he stopped to rationalize with his mind what he was about to do or allow the fear and doubt he could feel rising up in his heart to take root, he would never succeed. So without hesitation Peter released his grip on the mast, and being careful to not capsize the sinking boat by going over the side, with determination he began working his way between his soaked and miserable companions towards the back of the boat.
Thomas followed Peter’s movement between lightning flashes, then gasped as he saw what his friend was about to do. He supposed Peter’s intention was to sacrifice his own life in order to lighten the boat of his own generous weight and, perhaps, save the lives of the others. This would never do! Thomas lunged at Peter's leg which slipped from his grasp causing the boat to rock dangerously, and then watched in dismay as Peter confidently clamored over the edge. As he did so, his companions who like Thomas had now perceived Peter's intentions, shouted out in alarm, “Peter! What are you doing? No! You can't do that! Stay in the boat. We need you. NO!”
But Peter would not be dissuaded. He had seen that Jesus’ intention was to go to the far shore; not towards the boat and the men who had given all to follow and support him. Peter had resolved to fulfill the mission in whatever manner Jesus made possible, even if it meant leaving his dear friends behind in a sinking boat. And it wasn't without a breaking heart that Peter closed his ears to the cries of his friends who didn't understand what he now understood and turned his full attention to Jesus. Yes! It was Jesus! It had taken a while to realize that what he had feared the most only moments before, was in fact, the very One that he desired and loved more than anything or anyone else in the whole world. And now, more than anything else, he had to get to Jesus.
With full attention focused on Jesus, Peter felt his feet find a firm foothold on the surface of the thrashing waves. He clung to the side of the boat for a brief moment and then released his grip and stood, rising and falling, along side the boat as the waves crested beneath him. The men in the boat watched, speechless, as Peter began to move way from the boat and its terrified human cargo, staggering unsteadily at first across the surface of the stormy sea towards …Jesus.
The first dozen steps were exhilarating! Sensational! Then Peter remembered his friends back in the boat. “Oh, if only they could be here with me to experience this too,” he chuckled. Ha! I'm walking of the water! Can you believe it? Look at me, will you! Pride swelled up once again as he realized God’s power at work in his life. And then the truth sank in with a flash as brilliant as the lightning around him. We can really do what Jesus tells us to do. Even in a great storm like this when it seemed totally impossible, we can still do what he tells us to do! We can do it!
With that Peter glanced back to see what expression would be on his friends’ faces as they still huddled in the sinking boat. Would they understand what he now understood? Jesus had told them earlier, “With God nothing is impossible.” He had heard it with is head, but now the truth hammered home in his heart as he had dared to step out of the security of the boat.
He chuckled again as he saw their frozen expressions of disbelief and shock. What a strange sight to see them from this perspective. How fragile they looked clinging to the side of the little boat that they had thought was so secure. If they could only see themselves the way he was now seeing them…
He was about to motion for them to join him when another great wave rolled across the bow of the boat. “God help them!” Peter cried in alarm as the men in the boat scrambled in a renewed effort to bail out the water. Peter's joy suddenly turned to despair as he realized that with the sinking of the boat he would not only lose his dear friends, but every last hope of his own security would be totally gone as he stood upon a raging sea. This was ridiculous! You can't really walk on water! What was he thinking? His back now towards Jesus and facing once again the reality of the wind and waves, panic swept over his soul reviving unbelief and fear. And, like the waves sweeping over the bow of the boat, waves of fear and doubt swept over Peter’s soul and then, under the weight of that fear he too began to sink!
It was gradual at first. He felt the water begin creeping up his ankles then knees and as he sank lower his feet seemed bound and weighted as though an invisible hand were dragging him downward. He twisted around desperately in search of Jesus once again. Where was He? What if I continued to sink, his anxious mind screamed? What should I do? Go for the boat? Go for Jesus? No! This can't be! I'm a fool of fools! These waves are huge! I'll never make it! I'm going to die! And as Peter’s clinging, soaked clothing continued to drag him downward and as black thoughts raced through his mind, frantic cries from the boat reached his ears, pleading for him to hurry and get back inside. Then to add to his humiliation, others began mocking and laughing at his distress.
Since the boat was certainly sinking it would be pointless to return to it. Jesus was his only hope - but Jesus was headed for the far shore. Jesus was his ONLY hope. His only hope of survival in a very troubled time and his only hope of fulfilling the mission Jesus had given them to do.
The next flash of lightning brought Jesus’ figure back into view and, to his dismay, Jesus seemed oblivious to his desperate situation. By now Peter was chest deep in the water and still going down. A wave caught him in the mouth as he opened it to cry out. He had to get Jesus’ attention. Coughing and gasping, Peter sputtered, “Hey!” Then with clearing lungs and drawing a fresh breath of air he screamed out with all his strength, “Help!”
Hope rose as Jesus turned and looked towards Peter. But it was with a look of such great intensity, like one which Peter had never seen before, that penetrated his very bedraggled soul. It was a look that reached so deep inside that even in the midst of such great crisis it arrested Peter's full attention and brought him to a sudden end of himself. He had seen it all in just one flash of lightning! But in that blinding light Peter now knew that Jesus saw everything. Every thing! Good things and bad things. Everything he had ever tried to hide as well as things flaunted. And Peter knew Jesus saw it all, understood it all …and still LOVED him. Jesus loved HIM! He felt such incredible love, despite his miserable condition of both soul and body. Yet, Jesus still did not move in response to his cry.
With that piercing look from the Master, in that briefest moment, Peter's stubborn pride came crashing down. He gave up! His flailing arms relaxed. In genuine humility and desperation he simply and softly cried out of his heart one last time, “Lord, save me!” It was more like a whisper, so soft that Peter could barely hear it himself, crying out of the depths of his soul. But somehow Jesus heard and immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught Peter’s outstretched hand.
How it happened, Peter didn't understand. But how can you understand anything when you are caught up in the arms of the God of the Universe? Peter only knew that when he had cried out of his heart for Jesus to save him, he was saved! Jesus did it. With Jesus, he was safe. Even on the surface of a stormy sea, he was safe! …with Jesus! And he was happy about that! Boy, was he happy! …and relieved! …and wet!
As Peter looked towards the far shore, Jesus began to head for the sinking boat. The violent wind continued to rip swirling spray off the tips of the waves as Jesus, with his arm around Peter's waist, made their way back towards the boat. Peter remained in speechless astonishment as they neared the side of the boat filled with likewise speechless, dumbfounded men, eyes gaping in disbelief at the unfolding surreal events reveled in burst of lightning.
Jesus chuckled, shook his head as they neared the boat, and then with a piercing gaze looked each one in the eye said, “You of little faith. Why did you doubt?”
“Doubt what?” Peter wondered as both he and Jesus were quickly assisted over the side of the boat by eager hands ...a glad welcome that soon turned to alarm as the added weight of Jesus caused the floundering boat to quickly sink even lower in the water. “Yes," Peter wondered, "Why do I doubt your power? Why do I doubt your love? Why do I doubt your awareness of our crisis situations? Why do I doubt myself? Is that what this is about?”
As Peter sat on the edge of the rocking boat and pondering his failures and their dangerous predicament, the storm suddenly and simply abated. It just quit! In less time then it takes to tell, the roaring winds blew themselves off into the distance and the violence of the sea stopped. All that remained was frothy foam spread in patches across the tranquil surface, the only evidence of what just a moment before had held them in a deadly embrace.
Jesus’ disciples looked in disbelief from the smooth waters back to where He stood leaning against the mast where Peter, just minutes before, had clung for dear life. Moonlight began to break through the rapidly dissipating clouds and twinkled off a fish that jumped from the water. But none of the disciples even noticed as every eye was now focused intently on the Master.
Jesus looked down at the remains of the twelve baskets of miracle bread floating on the water that still sloshed around in the bottom of the boat and nudged a soggy glob with his toe.
Again He shook his head sadly and remarked, “Oh, Why did you doubt?”
But no one dared answer.
No one understood, except perhaps Peter who looked down at the floating remains of the miracle from the day before. Stooping down Peter slowly and thoughtfully began to bail out the water. Finally he too shook his head and quietly muttered, “Yeah, why did we doubt?” And with that, disregarding the still flooded boat, Peter fell down on his knees in the watery mess and with tears of relief, tears of regret, and tears of gratitude, worshiped his Messiah. With a new and fearful comprehension, the other disciples also worshiped in amazement declaring, “Jesus, truly, you are the Messiah!”
How long Peter remained on his knees no one knows. But when he finally got up, the boat was dry and bumping gently against a pier jutting out from a rock strewn shore near the village of Genneserat. They had arrived safely but the success of the mission no longer seemed to matter. There was no joy in having arrived. What brought a smile to Peter as he pulled himself to his feet was that Jesus was with them and the all the promises that His presence represented. Emmanuel, God with us! With God, all things are possible!
As Peter embraced the truth of this revelation, allowing it to move from his mind down to his heart, he felt a new strength and hope surge through his being. It felt strangely similar to the sensation of how the watery firmness felt beneath his feet on the stormy sea. Likewise, it was a feeling that defied all logic.
What was this power that seemed to raise him up when the storm within his soul threatened to destroy him? It was like Jesus was meeting him again on another stormy sea. Yes, he was drowning in the storm of self-centeredness, pride, and hypocrisy. The more he had tried to hide the truth of his shortcomings and protect his good name, the greater the storm had raged. Jesus was here now, this time inside Peter’s soul. And once again, as in Peter's moment of greatest desperation, as the water had given way beneath his feet, in similar humility and desperation, he simply and softly cried out of his heart, “Lord, save me!” And Jesus came! He came, strolling over the chaos and brokenness that was ravaging Peter's stormy soul and extended his hand to rescue a drowning man.
Peter reached out to grasp it. Once again, like the firmness that he felt under his feet when Jesus had reached out his hand and lifted him to the surface of the tossing waves, Peter now felt in his soul a similar, spiritual rescue that also defied all logic. This spiritual rescue was just as real and dramatic as the physical had been the night before. It was strong enough to support his miserable condition brought on by the inner spiritual storms he had become trapped in.
Again Peter found his solid footing. This time he found it by grabbing hold of a truth Jesus had told him about. It was the simple truth that - God loved him! God had been reaching out to him for so long, yet he had never understood His love with his heart. He had only tried to evaluate it with his mind and had always come up short, never actually receiving God’s love.
He had acted like he had received God’s love but in reality he always considered himself unworthy. He saw himself as unworthy of God’s love because he had always compared the promise of God’s love against his own secret shortcomings.
Now he understood! This was the source of his inner storm!
Yes, God really loved him! How or why didn’t seem to matter now. The fact was clear and Peter reached out and simply grabbed hold of it, clinging to it for dear life.
Through Jesus the revelation of God’s love in the middle of Peter’s great inner crisis had caused Peter to rise up out of the violence of the storms of his soul that he had been drowning him for so long. Storms that he had tried so carefully to control and conceal from his companions and especially from Jesus. He now grabbed hold of the truth of the revelation that God loved him. He had caught a glimpse, like in a flash of lightning in the darkness of his soul, of the magnitude of Gods love for him. God loved him just the way he was, in his miserable, hopeless, unworthy condition! God love him, Peter, …with all His heart, all His soul, all His mind, and all His strength!
Yes, that is how much God loves His children!
Peter wept softly as, in an act of faith humbly receiving the extended hand of God’s love, he found salvation and peace in his inner storm. He found a hope just as real as the salvation he and his friends had experience only a short time early in a physical storm.
A restful peace swept across Peter's entire being as the warming rays of the morning sun soothed his still aching shoulders. It was a new day and there would be other things Jesus would be asking him do. True, there would be more storms that would blow in on his life. But he had learned that his security, well being, and God's calling on his life, whether accomplished with the tried and proven traditional methods of men as represented by the little boat that nearly sank or in a dramatic supernatural display of God's mighty power as represented by his stroll on the wild waves, all were tied up in one simple reality; Jesus!
For many months Peter pondered the question Jesus had asked that night. Perhaps someday he would be able to understand fully what happened and why. But for the time being, he was satisfied to know that through Jesus he had come to experience and understand that God simply loved him and accepted him - just the way he was.
The fact was though, Peter would never fully understand the events of that stormy night. He would never know that what happened that fateful night was only part of a much bigger story; a story that would span across thousands of years yet to be unfolded. He would probably never understand that his story was a living parable created by the One who commands the storms and the destinies of men.
His was a living story that would be repeated thousand of times, in thousands of different ways, in the lives of thousand of other people who, like Peter, would be called by Jesus to “Go”. Called to go to the other side of the lake. Called to go to the neighbor on the other side of the street. Called to go to the other side of the country and even to go to the other side of the world, sent by their Master, often in a season of greatest personal trial and without ever even being told why or what to do on arrival. Called to go by faith. To go and love, to go and give, to go and speak, to go and be, to go and do.
The story of Peter tells us today that obedience to Jesus is not about knowing all the facts first. Obedience is not conditional on our guaranteed personal safety. It's not defendant on men's tried and proven systems, methods, experience, knowledge, or standards for success and failure. Obedience is simple. It’s about obedience, and about who we choose to acknowledge as 'Lord'.
Storms come! That is simply a fact. While the storm Peter experienced was a natural storm on a natural lake in a man-made boat, many, if not most of the storms we face today are storms that shake us just as dramatically. These storms hit our systems of security we thought cannot or should not sink - especially considering how much they cost us.
Today many, if not all of the systems which this world offers us that have guaranteed our personal security, are now being violently shaken, even on a global scale. We face economic instability, job insecurity, climate changes and unprecedented natural disasters, wars and rumors of war, moral chaos, family breakdown, mental breakdown, political turmoil, with truth itself being debunked and devalued. We're enslaved to the Great American Dream and insured up to our eyebrows because we’ve been convinced that somehow it will all fail, the whole time dodging our guilt ridden souls because deep down we know better! We know that God really does have a better plan - if we will only just...
Like Peter, we must choose to not focus on the 'storms'; those things that overwhelm us with fear, discouragement, doubt, depression, etc. These are pressing in more and more with each passing day on so many people, including God's people, diverting our hearts away from simple obedience and fulfillment of God's promises to a negative mind set of unworthiness, distrust and inability.
As God’s people we must, MUST, focus on Jesus. Not only a doctrine about Jesus, but Jesus as a real and living Being who is literally right next to you at this very moment. He is the One who is calling us. He has already called us! Now, if we are willing, He invites us to step out of our failing strategies and sinking systems of security which we so relentlessly hang on to, which so often are really getting us nowhere, to join Him on an amazing, victorious, and joyful journey, as we stay purposefully focused on Him and the mission He's called us to embark on - by faith.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus,
the author and perfecter of our faith,
who for the joy set before him endured the cross,
scorning its shame,
and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:2
by Wendell Martin; September 2010
