Exercising faith amidst the storms of life is not always easy — nor was it intended to be. Peter's attempt to walk on water provides insight to this truth. When Peter saw Jesus walking toward him on the water he asked Christ if he could come to Him, and Christ hailed him come. So Peter, without hesitation, climbed out of the boat and "walked on the water, to go to Jesus" (Matthew 14:29). Those of us who desire to come unto Christ often respond as Peter did: We get out of the boat and begin our walk of faith, whether it be a decision to be baptized, to pay tithing, pray or any action taken to bring us closer to Him.
Then Peter becomes fearful when he sees the "boisterous wind" (v. 30). In essence, Peter realizes walking on water is much harder and scarier than he first imagined. Taking his focus off the Savior immediately brought the difficulties of the situation and his own weaknesses into clear view, which resulted in his faltering. So we, too, can momentarily lose our focus, forgetting it is our partnership with Christ that makes "all things possible," not our merits alone (Matthew 19:26), no matter the obstacle or the severity of the storm raging around us. He provides the miracle. We do our part by keeping our eyes on Him and continuing to put one foot in front of the other, even if the storm rages on without relief and we don't know the full outcome of our efforts.
Christ walks on the water.
Robert T. Barrett
After Peter began to sink into the sea, "he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him. . . ." (v. 30-31). I find this portion of the account immensely comforting and hopeful for, despite Peter's wavering faith, Christ not only came to his aid but He responded "immediately." I like to think He responded so quickly because He knew the intent of Peter's heart. Peter really wanted to come to the Savior, wanted to be near Him; he just lacked the faith to make it happen. We all falter in our determination to follow Christ from time to time despite our righteous desires, especially when we are new to this principle. What a blessing to know He is ever ready to rescue, gently reminding us there is no need to doubt (v. 31).
Throughout the New Testament we see how Peter overcame his weaknesses and was made strong by his faith in Christ (Bible Dictionary, p. 749). He never gave up, and over time he never wavered. No wonder the Savior named him Peter, which means rock or stone (John 1:42), and entrusted him with the keys of His kingdom on earth. I take heart in Peter's example. His life demonstrates the strengthening power of choosing, practicing and perfecting faith in Christ over and over again. He learned what we all must learn. We may falter, but the Lord never does. With time and experience we come to trust Him more completely and more perfectly and thus our faith becomes an "anchor to (our) soul," making us "sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God" (Ether 12: 4) regardless of the storms of life that come our way.
Kathy Griffiths, a licensed professional counselor, is a stake single adult representative in the Crescent 22nd Ward, Draper Utah Crescent View Stake.
