A Blog of Encouragement from our Pastors
The WEekly Word
weekly word – 6/19/2025
“Between the Bread and the Storm”
A story inspired by Matthew 14:15–34
The sun was beginning to set, casting golden streaks across the Sea of Galilee. The crowd still sat on the grassy slopes, their hunger satisfied not just by the miraculous bread and fish, but by the very presence of Jesus.
Andrew, Peter’s brother, stood in awe, still holding a piece of barley bread in his hand. “How did He do that?” he whispered.
Peter, too, was equally dumbfounded. “Five loaves, two fish, thousands fed, and we collected twelve baskets of leftovers. I don’t understand it, but I believe.”
Jesus approached them and spoke to them with a quiet urgency. “You all must go ahead of Me, across the lake. Take the boat. I’ll dismiss the crowd.”
Peter hesitated. “Rabbi… aren’t You coming with us?”
Jesus smiled gently. “Not yet, Peter. I need to be alone—to pray.”
The disciples nodded, though puzzled, and began loading the small boat. Jesus turned to the crowd, sending them away with a peace-filled gaze. As the last of them disappeared over the hills, He climbed further up the mountainside, to be alone with His Father.
Night fell, and the wind on the lake began to shift. The disciples, already far from shore, were rowing against heavy waves. Hours passed, and the sky grew darker and darker. The fourth watch of the night—the deep stillness before dawn, was now on them.
Peter grunted as he pulled at the oars. “We should’ve reached the other side hours ago.”
John shaded his eyes. “The wind is against us.”
Thomas muttered, “Where is He now, when we need Him?”
Suddenly, Andrew shouted, pointing across the water. “Look—what’s that?”
Through the mist and lightening sky, a figure was walking toward them. On the water.
James cried out, “It’s a ghost!”
Terror gripped them. Men grown strong from fishing and travel now trembled. The figure came closer, unmoved by the waves, calm and steady.
Then a voice rose over the wind.
“Take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid.”
Peter squinted. “Jesus? Is that You?”
“It is I,” Jesus said again, nearer now. “Do not be afraid.”
Peter’s heart began pounding, and he called out to Him: “Lord, if it is really You, tell me to come to You on the water!”
Jesus smiled and said simply, “Come.”
Peter stepped to the edge of the boat; his breath caught between fear and faith. He lifted one leg over, then the other. His foot met the water—and didn’t sink.
He was walking. One step. Then another. His eyes were locked on Jesus.
“You’re doing it, Peter!” John exclaimed, clutching the side of the boat.
Peter laughed in amazement. “I am! Lord, I’m coming to You!”
But suddenly the wind picked up and howled louder. A wave crashed nearby, soaking Peter. His eyes flicked from Jesus to the storm. Doubt slipped in like water through a crack in a boat.
“What am I doing?” he muttered. “This isn’t possible...”
The moment he took his eyes off Jesus; he began to sink.
“Lord! Save me!” Peter cried, his arms flailing.
In an instant, Jesus reached out and grabbed him.
As Jesus pulled him up, He said gently, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Peter coughed and clung to His arm. “I was doing it... I really was. But the wind—it frightened me. I turned my eyes from you.”
Jesus looked into Peter’s eyes, firm but kind. “The storm didn’t stop Me from coming to you, Peter. Why did you let it stop you from coming to Me?”
Peter nodded slowly, ashamed but safe. “Forgive me, Lord.”
Jesus gripped his hand. “Faith isn’t about the size of the wave, Peter. It’s about the focus of your heart.”
The two stepped into the boat, and immediately, the wind ceased. Silence fell like a warm blanket.
The sea, once raging, was now calm.
The disciples stared at Jesus, the awe wide in their eyes. They had seen Him feed thousands with a boy’s lunch—but this was different. This was nature bowing to its Maker.
They fell to their knees.
“Truly,” John whispered, “You are the Son of God.”
The boat continued on, carried now by the stillness. The dawn had broken on the eastern shore.
Peter sat beside Jesus, still soaked, still shivering, but more from wonder than cold.
“Rabbi,” he said softly, “I believed when I stepped out, didn’t I?”
“You did,” Jesus replied.
“But then I doubted.”
“You looked at the waves instead of Me.”
Peter looked out across the now-glasslike water. “Will I always doubt?”
Jesus didn’t answer immediately. Then, quietly, “Your faith will grow, Peter. And even when you stumble, I’ll be there. Always.”
Peter turned to Him. “Even when I sink again?”
Jesus smiled, placing a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Especially then.”
As the boat reached the shore at Gennesaret, people were already gathering. Word had spread of the miracle man from Nazareth.
But for Peter, the real miracle wasn’t in the feeding of five thousand, or even the calming of the sea.
It was in the voice that said, “Come!”
It was in the hand that reached for him when he was sinking.
The same quiet voice that told Peter to “Come!” is calling you to “Come!” Come to Him!
And like Peter, when you take your eyes off Jesus, you open the door to the enemy to bring doubts into your life, and you will find yourself sinking. That’s when you need to call out to Him. He will hear your cry. His hand will reach for you. You just need to take it.
Ed Johanson © 6/25
Key Scripture References:
“But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’” —Matthew 14:27
“‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’ ‘Come,’ He said.” —Matthew 14:28–29
“Immediately Jesus reached out hi hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’” —Matthew 14:31
“Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’” —Matthew 14:33
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