The Hero is Not Me
I love reading through the miracles of Jesus, and usually begin each year going through one of the gospels, paying close attention to each of the miraculous stories. I don’t know about you, but reading about Jesus’ time on earth bring so much encouragement to my soul. There’s so much hope that is found in watching Jesus step into an impossible situation, and move in ways that no one saw coming.
There’s one story in scripture that recently ‘popped out’ when I was reading and I want to share with you the message of what God showed me. So — find a cozy spot, open your bible, and before beginning ask God to speak to you in a fresh way through His word.
Read Mark 6:45-56.
There are so many things that jump out at me through these verses, but there’s 2 main points I want us to focus on. First – let’s focus on the disciples. These poor guys were exhausted. They were doing exactly what Jesus had instructed them to do, but (as we all know!) ministry life is still taxing at times. The plan was for the disciples to hop in a boat and get away with Jesus to a quiet place to take just a quick bit to relax and breathe, but before they made it to the other side of the lake the people saw where they were headed and met them as soon as they landed on the shore. Because Jesus had compassion on the people, and was an amazingly selfless leader, He hops out of the boat and begins to teach. That’s the moment we see Him do one of the most extraordinary miracles in which He feeds the people and begins to teach them the message that He is the Bread of Life.
That miracle was amazing, and I’m sure the disciples were fired up, but after a big moment like that it’s easy when things slow down for our “highs” to quickly turn into “low’s”. We can’t ignore the fact that these men are still exhausted. Remember -- there wasn’t a break in there. It was one thing to the next, and their plans to get away and be refueled by time spent with Jesus just didn’t happen.
So after feeding the 5,000, Jesus sends them away and tells them He will meet them on the other side. Then Jesus leaves them to spend time praying on His own. Now the disciples are all alone, exhausted, on a lake, in a boat, in the middle of the Sea of Galilee.
Re-read Mark 6:47-48 slowly. Look close at what these verses tell us about the wind.
I don’t know about you, but its my tendency to initially feel that when God tells me to do something, when I know I’m walking ‘in His will’, that it should be somewhat easy. I’m not saying I don’t expect there to be bumpy moments, or storms that come, but It feels like the wind should be with me along the way. But that’s not always the case, is it? So many times we assume that if God sends us to do something the ‘wind would work with us’, but friend, can I just remind you of one thing? Just because the wind is against you, doesn’t mean that God is not for you.
In the case of these disciples, the wind was against them BECAUSE they were following what Jesus had told them to do. They were obeying exactly what Jesus had said, and now they find themselves wondering, pushing, straining toward what they know God said they need to do.
Have you ever felt that way? Have you felt like you’re following what Jesus said to do, but the wind is still against you? Like you are leading out how He has called you, yet things still feel really hard? Sometimes ‘windy days’ can be really scary, and sometimes these windy days can cause us to question what we know is true about God and what He has said to us. That’s what we see happen to these disciples. The storm causes them to be terrified and to panic, and they can’t even focus on truth because they are so gripped by fear.
It happens so quickly, doesn’t it? We go from watching God do the miraculous in our lives to being fixated on fear because we’re weary, worn out, and overwhelmed when things don’t line up the way we think they should.
But usually in my life, it’s the moments when I feel the most empty and my life feels out of control, that God shows up in an unmistakable way.
Go Read Mark 6:50-51.
You know what fascinates me most about Mark’s telling of this story? There’s a really big piece left out. Do you know what it is? (If you need help – look at Matthew 14:22-32)
Why on earth would the book of Mark not even mention such a huge part of the story? One of his friends literally gets to walk on water. A HUMAN walks on water. You would think John Mark would make mention of that, right? But no. Nothing. Doesn’t even write a quick little sentence about it. There’s nothing there talking about Peter’s whole faith moment. Why?
I learned about the book of Mark recently, that has completely framed the way I read it.
John Mark wasn’t one of the Jesus’ disciples, so He wasn’t in the boat that day. What we know from history is that there was a disciple that was in the boat that helped John Mark write out the story. Do you know who that man is?
Peter. The same Peter that walked on water. Peter, the guy who cuts off the ear of the soldier. Bold, Outspoken, Emotional, Peter.
So knowing that, isn’t it fascinating to you that Peter walking on water isn’t even included in this story? I can confidently say that if something like that happened to me, it absolutely would have been the highlighted element in the story. But not for Peter…..why?
Because it’s not important. It’s not important how they strained all night. It’s not important that the storm didn’t stop and the waves were splashing all over the boat and that they thought they were going to sink. It’s not most important that Peter walked on the water to Jesus. What’s not important is who got out the boat, but what is important is who got in it with them.
Friends – can I say something to you that I try to remind myself of every single day? The hero in my story is not me. As we lead, sometimes its easy to think that how we feel, or what we do is most important, but the truth is that it’s not important how we got out of the boat, but rather that Jesus got in it with us. He is our guide. He is our rescuer. He is all we need, so we live our lives not praising what we did or experienced, but that He is in the boat with us.
Spend the last few minutes this morning praising God for all He has done in your life. Ask Him for courage to keep going when the wind is strong and feels against you, and Ask Him to fix your eyes on Him as you run toward all He has called you toward.