Article June 27, 2005 Issue

THINKING OUT OF THE BOAT LESSONS FROM A PRAYER WATCH FOR DARFUR

By Karim Ajania

A well-known story in the Bible tells about Jesus walking on the water and encouraging his disciple Peter to do the same: "And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus" (Matt. 14:25-29).

Peter is going along with this amazing new experience, when we read: "But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me" (verse 30).

At first glance, this story seems far removed from our own modern experiences. But let's look at the story from another viewpoint: Peter was being bold and adventurous. He was willing to leave the safety of the boat — of what he was comfortable with — and literally venture out into unknown waters and get his feet wet in a new experience. We might say that Peter was "thinking out of the box." We've all done that in different ways. And we have all felt the elation when these experiences are going well for us. Equally, some of us also know what it is like to get knocked down from this joy and start sinking into a sense of helplessness. When that happens, we often find ourselves desperate, and like Peter, we might cry out, "Lord, save me."

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