The readings for Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time may be found at:
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081323.cfm
In today’s gospel from Saint Matthew, we hear about Jesus walking on water and Peter's attempt to do the same.
This scripture passage takes place after Jesus just fed the five thousand and sent the disciples ahead, alone in a boat while He went off to pray.
That same night, the disciples found themselves in their little boat, miles away from shore in a powerful storm.
Jesus knew the storm was coming up, yet he remained on His mountain praying.
He deliberately waited until the storm was life-threatening before he appeared to his disciples.
He does that sometimes to us too.
The disciples and their little boat struggled against the wind and the waves of that storm.
They must have felt great fear and anxiety, doing it alone - without Jesus with them.
Good thing we don’t face fear and anxiety in our lives - without Jesus.
Recognizing they were in trouble, Jesus came to them walking on the sea.
They couldn’t believe their eyes. They thought they were seeing a ghost.
They were freaking out.
But Jesus came to them, in that storm, walking on water, to show them He was with them.
They were never really alone at all.
Jesus came to show us that He is always present with us in our lives, especially during difficult times.
We are never really alone.
Jesus, doing the seemingly impossible, walking on water reminds us to trust in God’s presence - especially when we feel overwhelmed by the storms of life.
Recognizing the disciples were afraid, Jesus reassured them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
His promise is that He will be with us always.
We need to remember that - when things get hard.
So that we can find comfort and strength in His presence in our lives.
And this is where today’s gospel gets really interesting.
Jesus invites Peter to step out of the boat and walk towards Him.
On the water.
Peter, with strong faith in the moment, steps out and walks on the water towards Jesus.
He’s doing it.
And it’s a good reminder for us that we all need to step out in Faith as Peter did, with confidence in God’s presence, especially when times are hard and we are scared.
Reminded that Jesus is with us to support and guide us.
But just like we often do, Peter takes his eyes off of Jesus, and pays more attention to the storm around him and becomes afraid.
And Peter begins to sink. Sound familiar?
When we become overwhelmed by the storms in our lives - fear, doubt and uncertainty can take over and we too can take our eyes off Jesus.
Now, I have a confession to make. No, not that kind.
This has been a very difficult week for me personally.
I am not proud to say that I sank multiple times this week trying to walk on water without my eyes fixed on Jesus.
It’s so important that we keep our eyes on Jesus,
trusting in Him,
even in the face of doubt,
as our savior and as the author and perfecter of our faith.
When Jesus reaches out His hand and saves Peter, saying, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?".
He says the same thing to us.
When we focus on Jesus, we find the strength and courage we need to navigate through the storms of life - to walk on water.
The more we look at our problems and the less we look at Jesus, the larger and more unsolvable our problems seem to be.
But the more we look at Jesus instead of looking at our problems, the more they shrink next to him.
We are not that different from Peter.
He made many mistakes.
He often said the wrong thing.
Yet Jesus deliberately chose him - the same Peter who would later deny Him three times.
Jesus often waits until we are in deep trouble to come and save us from it.
He may let us swallow a little water, but he does not let us drown.
Today, Saint Matthew reminds us to trust in God’s care for us and to not let our problems and fears get the better of us.
We need to learn, as Peter did, that the Lord is still there for us.
He hears our prayers and stretches out His saving hand.
This week, let us ask God to give us guidance and strength
to help us to keep our eyes firmly fixed on Jesus as we navigate the storms of our lives.
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