August 31, 2024 Devo

Comfort zones. We all have them. They are the safe spaces we like to stay in. The places we can hide in. They are the places we know, the places we feel we can control. Sadly, they are also the places that keep us from becoming all we can be and the barriers to stretching, growing, and becoming.
Peter was brash and daring. We all know that. He talked too much, bragged too much, and often acted impulsively. But he also did something none of the other disciples ever did. He walked on water. Read that last sentence again. Peter WALKED ON WATER. No, it wasn’t for a long time. No, he didn’t run around the outside of the boat, and he didn’t play hide and seek in the waves. And yes, eventually he sank. But he did, for at least a few moments, do something he never dreamed he would do. He got out of the boat and walked on the water. All the other disciples just watched. So what’s worse? Stepping out on faith and falling a bit short or staying in the boat and never doing anything at all?
Unfortunately, most of us are more like the security-seeking, play-it-safe, comfort-zone-abiding disciples who stayed in the boat. Maybe we put our toe in the water once and it was too cold. Maybe we tried something once that failed, so we decided we’re never going to try again. Maybe we stepped out of our boat once and had a run-in with some people who gave us a hard time and hurt our feelings, so we retreated back to the boat, vowing never to do anything like that ever again. Staying in the boat doesn’t make you a “bad” person. It just means you’re fearful, insecure, or wounded. All of which seems like pretty sad reasons to me not to join Jesus out on the water.
Come on. Some of you are feeling the tug of God, I know. Jesus is telling you to move, and you’re hunkered down in that boat gripping the railing for all you have. It’s time to exercise faith again. It’s time to step up, step out, and do something bold again. It’s time to listen to God instead of your fear. God is calling you; Jesus is waiting on you. You know what you need to do. Get out of your boat. That’s God’s Word for you today.