Trust in Jesus

19th Sunday A (Mt. 14:22-33)

Jesus spoke to them, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." (Mt. 14:27).

A group of botanists were exploring a mountain in search of new species of flower. One day they saw a flower of great rarity and beauty. However it lay in a deep ravine and to reach it someone needed to be lowered by a rope and a dangerous undertaking. They saw a boy watching them and offered him money if he would be willing to be lowered down to pick that flower. The boy looked down at the ravine and said, “I will be back.” When he returned he was accompanied by an older man. He said to one of the botanists, “I’ll go over the cliff and get the flower for you if this man holds the rope. He is my father”. (Mark Link)

Our lives are confronted with different challenges. Sometimes the challenge is so tough that we feel as if our lives were being tossed about by waves. We have a good reason to fear it. But holding on to the words of Jesus, “Take courage, It is I, do not be afraid,” which means, “I am here to save you,” we can conquer all our fears. Just like the boy who put his trust in his father, we need to put our trust in Jesus because He cares for us and will not allow us to sink.

There are times, however, when the challenge is not equal to our faith. Though we believe in God’s saving presence, our trust at times becomes conditional. We tend to panic when things get out of control. Peter requested to walk on the water and Jesus invited him to come. Peter started off with confidence. He was able to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw how strong the wind was, he became frightened and began to sink.

Often times our confidence also turns to fear when we start to focus on the wind. When life’s challenges come along our way, we tend to concentrate on the problems, and we sink into frustration and despair. Look at what happened to Peter when he stopped trusting in Jesus: he sank. This too happens to us when, instead of trusting in Jesus, we begin to trust in ourselves. We worry too much and our anxieties become unbearable. Yet let us not forget that Jesus is here to stretch out His hand to save us.

Our faith is a gift from God. If we truly believe that He loves us we know He will not let us sink. Jesus is here to save us. If we believe in His love we will put our trust in Him.

May God bless you all!