By Robin Walls

 

 

It's amazing when God shows you something you already know but He reveals it to you in ways that make you see it in a whole new light. This has been happening in our home for the past few weeks.

 

We all know the story of when Jesus walked on the water and called Peter out of the boat to walk on the water to Him. Most of us learned it as a child from our parents or in Sunday school.  We learned that Jesus did this to show us that He is the Son of God.

 

Our family has been experiencing a season of  challenges, just as your family may be or have done in the past.  Just normal life stuff with an added challenge or two.  In the midst of it, God has revealed this story to me and my son so many times and in so many different ways that it has been impossible to miss. The story has come to be a renewed life line for us.

 

It started in March when Pastor Matt delivered the message about ‘The Waiting Room’.  At the end, he made a reference to focusing on Jesus, not on the waves or the storm. It hit me right then that in the story, the waves and the storm represented the challenges of life and Jesus was what He always is...our salvation.  We just needed to keep our eyes on Him.

 

The next time was through an email devotion. When I opened the email and read the title of that day's devotion, Walking With Jesus in a Storm, I was amazed that the Lord sent this so clearly to us a second time. The devotion spoke about how precious it is to experience God's presence through hard times and to pray for discernment to be able to recognize His presence.  We were grateful for another layer of reinforcement about keeping our eyes on Jesus.

 

A few days later, a band my son and I love and have seen perform many times was posting live on social media from a boat. The person speaking was so moved and quite emotional. When I turned the volume up, I learned that they were in a boat on the Sea of Galilee and he was talking in awe about being on the same body of water that Jesus had walked on. I was hearing God loud and clear. At this point, we started keeping count of the times He brought this story to us.

 

Days later, I was in my car when a song came on the radio that was popular a year ago. We had heard the song so many times that we were desensitized to the words and their beautiful meaning.  But that day it hit me when the Holy Spirit made me hear as if it were the first time.

 

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders

Let me walk upon the waters

Wherever You would call me

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander

And my faith will be made stronger

In the presence of my Savior

    -Hillsong

 

The most recent way God showed us the importance of this story was actually through Facebook. A friend posted this picture and when I saw it, it took my breath away.

 

It's a beautiful reminder to keep our eyes focused on Jesus and not the waves or the storm.  If we slip up and focus on the waves, we can be sure that he will be there reaching out us.

 

Where have you seen God bringing old lessons back to been seen in a new light?