If you keep up with the news, you have probably discovered that the more news you absorb, the more distressed you become. Some people can’t watch news programs without becoming agitated, aggravated, angry, or even depressed. It would probably do us good to wean ourselves off all the bad news; maybe we should quit listening to what men and governments are doing. With that in mind let’s consider this passage in Matthew 14:24-49:

“But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. Now in the fourth watch of the night Yeshua went to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. But immediately Yeshua 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 had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Yeshua.”  

The disciples were surrounded by swirling winds and crashing waves. The boat was battered and, on top of it all, the storm struck in the darkest part of the night. It is easy to imagine that their focus was upon all the things that were happening outside of the boat. But Yeshua came walking to them and, though they were initially afraid, Peter decided to make a bold move; he desired to walk on the water to the Messiah.

When Peter climbed out of the boat and started walking toward Yeshua, he was able to defy the laws of nature and gravity. That is, until he got his eyes on the wind and the waves — for us today, that might be all the bad news reported 24-7. Like Peter, when we get our eyes on things that agitate, scare and depress us, we begin to sink into a not-so-good place. Thankfully for Peter and for us, the Messiah is always close at hand to save us.

The main point is this: presumably Peter would have continued to walk on the water had he kept his eyes on the Messiah. Likewise, we can accomplish much for the Kingdom if we keep our eyes on Him; we can’t let the storms raging in the world steal our attention away from the Author and Finisher of our faith. So let’s get our focus off what governments, presidents, kings, dictators, and organizations are doing. Instead, let’s use those things swirling around us as provocation to get our eyes focused on where they should have always been — on the Messiah.

Shalom.