Save Me!

Save Me!

Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.
And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid." Matthew 14:25-27

Imagine you were one of the disciples on the boat in rough seas in the night and you see someone walking on the water. What would you think? Would you be afraid? They were rough waters this evening and it was the first time they’d seen someone walking on them. Jesus though speaks to them and says, “Don’t be afraid. Take courage.” Jesus’ words were so comforting that Peter stood up and said to the Lord, “If it is You, command me to come to You on the water."

Peter really lives up to his reputation as the one who talks before he thinks, but I think sometimes God likes this because we put ourselves in situations where we have to trust Him. “Jesus, tell me to come,” says Peter. “Come,” Jesus replies.

As believers we hear God’s word preached and it reveals that Jesus is near. We then begin to see Him and hear Him speak. This buoys our confidence and desire to walk in the places where Jesus walks, and to do the things Jesus does. So we pray to Him and ask to be called to a life of faith. Jesus then calls back to us and says, “Come.” Then we experience the joy of walking by faith. There is such freedom in trusting Jesus for our lives, for our families and our future. After walking toward that life we at times start to see the turmoil in the world around us. Then fear sets in and we sink into despair because without realizing it we have taken our eyes off of Jesus and placed them on the problems that confront us. “But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!” (Matthew 14:30)


Christians sometimes think that they have a lot to fear because their choices in life are often very different than what some may have wanted. Perhaps they chose the life of a missionary, or a worker in a church. Maybe they gave up what seemed to be a promising career to follow Jesus to a place that not many people go. Then comes the phone call from a friend or well-intentioned family member asking what they are doing with their life. Then they ask the same question, “What am I doing?” This is where fear comes in and people wonder about the future. I have looked at successful friends and thought, “They have it made,” only to find out that down the road things were no so rosy after all. We imagine that others have no fear, when in fact they have more fears than we could imagine. Fear of failure, future, security, health concerns and other things weigh heavy on people’s minds. The problem is that most don’t know or believe that they can be free from these fears.

Though Peter forgot to keep looking at Jesus, he didn’t forget to call on Him when he was in need. “And beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him.”

I’m so glad that even when I fail, all I have to do is call on Jesus to save me and He will.
In Isaiah 43:5 God says, “Fear not for I am with you.” He is with you today if you have trusted Him. Now call on him in your need and He will save you and lead you.