And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear.
Matthew 14:25-26
The waves crash forcefully against the boat.
The wind stings the disciples’ faces as they struggle to get some sleep.
The last one to keep watch for the night gets up groggily at 3 in the morning.
He navigates through the deepest darkness that precedes the dawn.
It’s been a rough crossing—headwinds on the Sea of Galilee have been gale-force.
The last thing anyone expected was to see Jesus!
Isn’t that just how we are?
Especially in our darkest moments—
when it hurts the most,
when everything and everyone has failed you,
when you’re in the middle of the storm and you don’t know
when you’ll get to the other side—
the last thing you think you’ll see
is the presence of God.
Yet as the disciples are watching;
here comes Jesus,
coming right toward them,
walking on water,
doing the impossible
to prove his divinity and dominion over all the earth.
Isn’t that what the disciples thought after Good Friday?
They never expected to see Jesus again—he had just been crucified.
The disciples were probably terrified that they would be next.
Yet three days later,
there Jesus was,
in their midst,
resurrected, ALIVE!
Doing the impossible
to prove his divinity and dominion, even over death.
Just when you think the darkness couldn’t get any darker,
just look,
watch,
and wait for Jesus—the anchor of your soul—
to come to you,
bringing you His light and life
when you least expect it,
and when you need it the most.
Christie Hutchins '08