The Other Side of Faith
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
“Lord, if it is you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him, “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him saying, “Truly you are the son of God.”
I want to continue to study this verse because there is more here (there always is with the Word of God; that’s why it’s never boring. It’s so full of new insights and lessons). When I imagine Peter walking to a certain point, and then sinking, I think of him as stopping on this side of faith. By this I mean that he stopped on the earthly side of faith. If he had kept walking, he would have ended up on the other side of faith – the spiritual side of faith. And that’s where the insurmountable power of faith lies! I am realizing that the more we walk in faith, the better we get at it, and the better we get at it, the more of it we receive, and the further God expects us to walk – on water, through fires, discouragements, and sometimes with no resources, no obvious answers to how the journey will work out; it’s a walk of faith after all.
The good thing is that the more we are trained up in it, the less we fear, the less we overreact, the more we persevere – like front-line soldiers who are unmoved – un-rattled by a few bullets and/or a few bombs! God doesn’t send a brand new soldier out into the most dangerous battleground; He trains them up first. After suffering, having to completely live on faith – rather than comforts of this world, and potentially after giving someone else your last 50 cents that you yourself needed for milk that day, God says, “Now, that’s what I’m talking about; you get it!” He knows that we know that He is our ultimate provider, and He will work it out for our good as long as we – in faith – trust Him for the outcome.
A good friend once said to me, “Kristina, where there is great risk, there are even greater blessings.” She was encouraging me because I happened to be “risking it all” on God. He was all I had and all I needed. When God asks you to sacrifice something, the degree of the sacrifice equals the extent of the blessings. Don’t look at the sacrifice in fear, rather, look at the sacrifice - actually, stare at it with your eyes of faith, until you can see the blessings that it represents for you and all of those who know you. God has a plan and it’s AWESOME! Can you see it?
Once you get that far out on the water, don’t look around for your friends, and don’t turn to wave at them as they stand and either laugh or encourage you from the shore – don’t look back, down, or around, - look straight ahead. It may feel lonely, and you may feel as if you’ve lost your absolute loving mind, but don’t let that stop you. Truth is, you have “lost your mind,” now you are thinking in the Spirit! The more you think in the Spirit, the less you are bound by this physical world, and the more physical territory you will possess for the Kingdom!
Welcome to the other side of faith. Did you ever think about the fact that Jesus didn’t have a salary, a house, his own bed, or vacation days? He was definitely walking in the Spirit. If you are walking on the water and you are tempted to look at the wind, DON’T! God has immeasurable blessings that will compliment and surpass your immeasurable faith.
Kristina Seymour loves to encourage and equip women through the Word and through community. She is the author of The Warrior Mom Handbook, The Warrior Mom Leadership Manual, and The Warrior Wife Handbook; they are available at Amazon.com. Kristina's Bible studies are for women who desire to live by faith in the midst of their everyday lives. She has learned that women can't survive on caffeine and animal crackers alone; women in the Word and in community are united and able to stand firm. To learn more about Kristina, please visit her website, https://kristinaseymour.com/. God loves to share His story of love and grace through us all, and Kristina believes that everyone has a story to tell.
Originally published Tuesday, 07 July 2020.
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