Stepping out of the Boat
Jesus didn’t promise you a safe and predictable life.
Many times, following him may rather feel the opposite. Like stepping out of the boat and walking on water…
What would that be like?
Setting a Jesus-standard
First, it demands a clear decision for the standard you want to set. It’s not always a given choice; you’ll have to find out and understand what the Jesus-standard in your situation actually is.
Don’t expect it to be convenient or easy. Nor will it always be familiar or acknowledged by those around you. It may not even necessarily fit into your religious tradition, or correspond to any cultural or political correctness.
Doing What’s Right
Be prepared to take a risk. To act in faith, despite the facts and your previous experience.
Don’t be satisfied with mediocrity. And don’t get trapped by the false security it gives you!
Insist on doing what’s right, not what’s easy or common or accepted.
Be determined to guard your integrity and your clear conscience, thus rejecting the slightest form of corruption and any other common form of wickedness. No matter how accepted they may seem to be.
This may lead you to make the impossible possible. Like making peace in the midst of enmity. Or creating hope where others only see despair. Or building trust in a world of lies and broken promises.
Resulting in slowly changing people’s attitudes. Convincing them to serve others instead of exploiting them.
Causing them, in turn, to step out of the boat.
Getting Involved With People
This urges you to get involved with people. Not only with your buddies, but also with those others: the weak, the poor, the foreigners, the refugees, the odd, and other neglected and marginalised people.
Giving faith to those who have no faith and hope to the hopeless, recognising their potential and investing where others have given up.
Stepping out of your boat…
It challenges your patience, your resilience and your grit. It tests your ability to practise forgiveness and loving-kindness at all times, even in the midst of disappointment, slander and betrayal.
Sooner or later your decisions will lead to action, and eventually your actions will bear fruit.
Looking at Jesus
Let’s resume: “Stepping out of the boat” outlines a way to do life that may be fundamentally different from the way many of us have learned to walk out their Christian life in the past. And the challenge may turn out to be even greater than we ever expect.
On the other hand, it also lets us experience far more of God’s glory than we ever might think would be possible.
Does this scare you? Or make you feel condemned?
Then don’t look at the waves. And don’t look at what you’re not capable of, or what you missed in the past.
Quit defending, explaining and arguing. Stop looking at yourself.
Look at Jesus!
Walking on Water
The only way to get involved with what God is doing today is to step out into the deep water and let him carry you on today’s current of his Spirit.
Today, do whatever his Spirit is leading you to.
Don’t be afraid!
Trust him!
Walking on water only comes to those who get out of their boat.