{"id":3545,"date":"2023-08-14T13:35:51","date_gmt":"2023-08-14T13:35:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.firstpresvaldosta.org\/?p=3545"},"modified":"2023-08-14T13:35:51","modified_gmt":"2023-08-14T13:35:51","slug":"where-is-the-safety-net","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.firstpresvaldosta.org\/index.php\/2023\/08\/14\/where-is-the-safety-net\/","title":{"rendered":"Where is the Safety Net?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Where is the Safety Net?<\/span>
\nFirst Reading Psalm 85:8-13<\/span>
\nSecond Reading Matthew 14:22-33<\/span>
\nAugust 13, 2023 First Valdosta<\/span>
\nEleventh Sunday after Pentecost<\/span>
\nJane Shelton, CRE<\/span><\/p>\n

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Today\u2019s message takes us to the first place in Matthew that a human recognizes and proclaims Jesus as the Son of Man.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus\u2019 escape to the mountain to pray is an example that shows us the importance in finding time to be alone to be in the presence of God.\u00a0 Allowing ourselves these quiet moments of escape is both renewing and healing.\u00a0 It allows us time to release the burdens we carry and simply be at peace as we rest with God.<\/span><\/p>\n

Allowing ourselves these quiet moments also provides time for discernment, especially when we are open to receive new direction or even the same direction with new intention that God is leading us toward.<\/span><\/p>\n

As Jesus shows us in Matthew 14, sometimes we have to take care of others and send our friends ahead of us to be able to make this escape.\u00a0 We have to be committed to complete and then release ourselves from the demands that are put before us, and ultimately take the necessary steps to take care of our well-being before we can take care of others.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the hectic busy world we live in today, perhaps we are not finding or taking the necessary time to be alone.<\/span><\/p>\n

While Jesus makes time to be alone, it doesn\u2019t take long for the disciples to find themselves in need of rescue.<\/span><\/p>\n

Battered by the waves and alone in the storm, or so they thought, Jesus comes to them in the storm to calm their fears.\u00a0 He comes to remind them they are not alone, and even when he is not visibly in their presence, he still is watching over them, ready to rescue them from present danger.<\/span><\/p>\n

In his steps on the water, Jesus is again showing his divine Spirit and connection to God\u2019s power over nature.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the Greek word used by Matthew and translated in our scripture as \u201cghost,\u201d there is an acknowledgement by the disciples of the appearance of the divine.\u00a0 They truly see God\u2019s presence before them.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus confirms this when he speaks, \u201cit is I\u201d relating to the Old Testament of God referring to himself as \u201cI am\u201d when God reveals himself to Moses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus reminds us also, as did God in the Old Testament, \u201cfear not,\u201d as a welcoming to come into the presence of the divine where it is safe and where you will find true rest.\u00a0 We are truly welcomed, and it is a desired relationship by God from the very creation of man that we be with and rest with God.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus invites us to take his hand and come walk with him.\u00a0 Not ahead of him or behind, but beside him in a mutual relationship with the divine.<\/span><\/p>\n

As the disciples proclaim Jesus as the Son of God, it is a turning point in the life of the disciples to whole heartedly accept Jesus for who he truly is so that God\u2019s mission for his people can continue.\u00a0 A mission to be in relationship with God personally, and in community together.\u00a0 The same mission we are called to today.<\/span><\/p>\n

After naming Jesus as the Son of God, the disciples worshipped him while in the boat revealing to us that we are not required to only come to Jesus on Sunday morning here in this place, this building to worship God, rather we can worship him anywhere we encounter his presence, even in a boat.\u00a0 Truly, we can encounter Jesus anytime, day or night, and any day of the week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Peter is drawn to experience his Lord, to reach out to him and know that it is indeed his Lord, even to the point of stepping outside the boat.\u00a0 We can all look at that move and say maybe it was not the best idea, yet it certainly took courage for Peter being willing to risk his life to walk to Jesus in the storm.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes stepping out or reaching out of our comfort zone is the hardest thing for us to do; however, doing so to be with our Lord is the most satisfying risk we can make.<\/span><\/p>\n

All goes well until Peter loses his focus and turns his attention back to the wind, yet as our Jesus shows us over and over again, he is there waiting to reach out and lift us out of the storm.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last week Jesus showed us how he feeds us and meets our every need, even with limited resources.\u00a0 This week he continues to show us his love and compassion for us when we put our trust and faith in acknowledging he is the Son of God.\u00a0 He is always watching out for us, always leading us to the freedom to be at peace in the presence of knowing God is always with us and is our help in time of need.<\/span><\/p>\n

Everyone gives Thomas a hard time for asking to touch the scars in Jesus\u2019 hands as proof that it was Jesus, yet here we see Peter seeking the same reassurance that it is indeed Jesus with a different proposition.\u00a0 \u201cLord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In the same way Jesus reached out his hand for Thomas to see and feel the scars in his hands, he reaches out to Peter, and says, \u201cCome.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Like Peter, we are eager to step out in faith and follow Jesus, and when the distractions come and we lose focus, we find ourselves sinking far from shore.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus is always watching over us.\u00a0 It is only when we lose our focus and take our eyes off of Jesus that distance is created, and we begin to sink.\u00a0 And when this happens, Jesus is there, waiting to catch us.<\/span><\/p>\n

Following Jesus requires us to risk everything we have, all of our assumed earthly securities.\u00a0 The reality is, the only true security we have is in Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

A few weeks ago my daughter-in-law and granddaughter decided they wanted to sky dive.\u00a0 When my husband asked his son why he wasn\u2019t going to go jump with them, he replied, \u201cSomeone needs to stay home in case we need to collect the insurance!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In talking with them about their sky dive, they both confirmed it was the person they were tethered to that helped them overcome their fear, even though the hardest part was making their way out of the plane to begin the jump.<\/span><\/p>\n

Where is our faith in free falling with Jesus?\u00a0 It\u2019s easy to think it, to say it, yet it is another thing entirely to let go and live it.<\/span><\/p>\n

To Peter\u2019s credit, when his faith faltered, when he was distracted, he still knew to call out to his Lord to keep him from sinking.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Skye Jethani\u2019s book titled, \u201cWith,\u201d he writes about how control is an illusion, and questions \u2018how we can be set free from fear apart from our feeble attempts at control?\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

He shares a story of how Dutch priest, Henri Nouwen, found his answer in a South African trapeze troupe, called the Flying Rodleighs in which Nouwen attended a performance out of curiosity and found himself transfixed by the artistry of the acrobats.\u00a0 In the flying and spinning, Nouwen saw theology in motion.\u00a0 He observed the person soaring through the air as not the real star of the performance, but rather the catcher.\u00a0 Everything depends upon the catcher because the flyers truly trust the catcher to catch them.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2018This led Nouwen to a new way of understanding his life with God.\u00a0 \u201cI can only fly freely when I know there is a catcher to catch me,\u201d he wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nouwen then proceeded to harness and fly himself, flying freely with joy and childish glee each time he went up.<\/span><\/p>\n

He said, \u201cIf we are to take risks, to be free, in the air, in life, we have to know there\u2019s a catcher.\u00a0 We have to know that when we come down from it all, we\u2019re going to be caught, we\u2019re going to be safe.\u00a0 The great hero is the least visible<\/u>.\u00a0 Trust the catcher.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Nouwen\u2019s statement can be summed up as \u201chave faith,\u201d which is the opposite of having control.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In his book, Jethani continues to explain that \u201crather than trying to overcome our fears by seeking more control, the solution offered by Life WITH God is precisely the opposite—we overcome fear by surrendering control.\u00a0 But, surrender is only possible if we have total assurance that we are safe.\u00a0 We must be convinced that if we let go we will be caught.\u00a0 This assurance only comes when we trust that our heavenly Father desires to be WITH us and will not let us fall.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

What safety nets are we looking for today to keep us from falling, to keep us from being consumed by our fears?\u00a0 We only need one safety net, and that catcher, in all his love and compassion for us, is Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

*Cover Art by StushieArt; used with subscription<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Where is the Safety Net? First Reading Psalm 85:8-13 Second Reading Matthew 14:22-33 August 13, 2023 First Valdosta Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost Jane Shelton, CRE   Today\u2019s message takes us to the first place in Matthew that a human recognizes and proclaims Jesus as the Son of Man. 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