Jesus takes us to safety

In 1952 Florence Chadwick wanted to swim from Catalina Island to a beach in California. In the misty weather along the Californian coast she couldn’t even see the shore. After 15 hours of swimming she was exhausted and wanted to climb back into the boat that accompanied her. Her mother told her she is very close to shore, but Florence simply couldn’t go on. Safely inside the boat, she saw that there was less than a kilometre to go. Afterwards Florence said: “All I could see was the fog ... I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.” This sounds almost like Peter’s dilemma in Matthew 14 when he walked on water with Jesus. Peter is blinded by the stormy weather around them. He is so focussed on the storm that he doesn’t notice Jesus anymore. And then he sinks. Lucky his cry for help – “Lord, save me!” – doesn’t fall on deaf ears. Jesus immediately pulls his drenched disciple from the water and climbs into the boat with him. From the storm to the safety of the boat, Jesus is with His people. He hears our cries for help when we sink. He helps us to see the shore again. He even takes us there when we are too weak. Jesus is always nearby.