January 22
Gen 44:1-45 | PS 18:37-50 | Prov 4:11-13 | Matt 14:13-36
There was a patient on the labor and delivery floor the other day (not my patient). One of the physicians who can at times be cold and to the point delivered a very difficult and upsetting message to a patient, apparently leaving her sobbing. One of the nurses, who is also one of my sisters in Christ was taking care of her. Completely focused and not distracted she waited for the physician to leave. She did not negate anything the physician said, but asked the patient if she would be comfortable if she prayed with her. She then told her about God, Who is larger and greater than our circumstances. She informed her that He is not limited and miracles are possible in His hands. Her countenance changed as a result of this conversation. Apparently the baby was born that day and the baby fared better than expected. The point is, this Christian nurse did not bury herself in her cell phone, was not daydreaming, lost in her own thoughts. Her eyes were fixed on Jesus and an opportunity was not missed. When difficulties arise either in your own life or those around you, where is it that you go to for direction. What addiction, what distraction is it that is destroying you and others. The question is, is Jesus enough for you, or do you seek your counsel elsewhere, or perhaps some form of hybrid which might include a little of Jesus. Is it a twelve step program, a self-help book, a worldly group that has experienced something similar, some advice from a worldly friend? If we truly want to walk with Jesus, we are holding onto His hand, not His and someone or something else.
We come to a familiar passage of Scripture today in Matthew 14:22-33, when Jesus walks on water, and Peter does the same. The apostles are afraid, as they are in the midst of terrible winds on the Sea of Galilee and in the middle of the night, think they see a ghost approaching them. We read in 14:27-30, “But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” And Peter answered Him and said , “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” So He said, “Come”. And when Peter has come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” Peter was fine as long as he kept his focus on Jesus. It was when he allowed the surrounding storm to distract him, that he took his eyes off of Jesus and began to sink. We read of the calling of Moses in Exodus 3:3-4, “Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” How would this story have differed if it took place now and Moses has a set of earphones in as he was absorbed into whatever nonsense was being put forth from his phone.
We read the definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Though we do witness miracles, most of us have not literally seen Jesus walk on the water, or heard our name from a burning bush (though God does call some through visions and dreams). So for most of us it comes down to faith in the One that we cannot literally see or touch. But we know from His Word, from His creation, from His Spirit that He is very much real. So which reality to you is more important. I would argue that faith in Him who is unseen is more real than what it is that we perceive as real because we can touch it and see it. For Peter, he had to decide which reality was more real, and when he took his eyes off of Jesus, and onto the waves, he sunk. The question we must ask ourselves is what are we missing by doubting or being distracted? How much more could we be doing for the sake of His kingdom if we simply took our eyes off of ourselves, and onto Him. How many of us miss our calling simply because we don’t take the time to listen. The excuses are numerous: no time, too busy, family strains, money issues, etc. But this is all not true. Choices are made daily, and these choices exclude God. Everyone spends so much time distracted. How different might your life be if you simply looked up towards God and then looked around at your surroundings to see how He can use you. With spare time at work how different would our lives be if our focus was on looking at Scripture or the things of God rather than every other distraction. If our eyes were on Jesus we would be an army of Christian soldiers ready for the battles that come our way. May we keep our eyes on Jesus, and allow the distractions to fall aside.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: