18th Tuesday "Take My Hand"

 Think about this for a minute. Suppose you were on a boat being tossed by the wind and the waves and there were cracks of thunder and flashes of lightening. You were frightened because it is night time and the boat begins to take on water. Then suddenly you see Jesus come toward you on the water. He reaches out His hand and says “Come. Get out of the boat and walk on the water. Keep your eyes on me. Take my hand.” Your thinking, I can’t do this, but then you do as you are told, you get out of the boat and begin to walk on the water. You are looking at Jesus and He is looking at you. You think, “I’m walking on water. I’m walking on water.” But suddenly you feel the wind blowing and the waves crashing against your legs and you begin to look around and then suddenly you begin to sink. You hear Jesus say, “Look at me. Take my hand”, then suddenly you’re in the boat and the wind dies down and waves become smaller and smaller.

Now suppose you have been diagnosed with lung cancer, or leukemia, or the doctor tells you, you need a quadruple by-pass. Then you picture Jesus in your mind walking up to you and saying, “Come. Get out of the boat and walk. Don’t allow your fears to control you. Keep your eyes on me and take my hand.”

You begin to take chemo, your hair falls out. You become nauseated and become sicker and sicker. Or you had your by-pass surgery, but now you are on the vent and the doctor won’t take the vent out because you can’t breathe well. Day after day, you keep hoping today will be day I am no longer nauseated or I will be off the vent.

Then the words of Jesus come to mind, “Come. Get out of the boat and walk. Don’t allow your fears to control you. Keep your eyes on me and take my hand.”

Then you realize it doesn’t matter if you get better or not. It doesn’t matter if the vent doesn’t come out. You close your eyes and you see Jesus. You are holding His hand. Everything is white and peaceful. You no longer have pain. You can breathe easily and you begin to see the most beautiful place you ever seen. No more storms, no more fears, no more worries. Everything is just fine.

You kept your eyes on Jesus. You held His hand. You kept the faith. And He calmed the storm and now you are with Him forever. Amen.