It is the end of year two thousand and fifteen. I can’t say that it was not without its challenges, its ups and downs, highs and lows, ebbs and flows. But through it all…Jesus. He was always at my side, even when it did not feel as though He was nearby, He was right beside me and when I was distracted and shifted my focus from Him to other things, He was still there. He is my Paraclete – He’s always at my side. I often had to remind myself of this truth.
So, what’s in store for 2016? This is a question I posed to God just days ago. I don’t think that it’s an unreasonable inquiry. After all I really thought that 2015 would have seen the back end of this storm I’m in. Now with only one more day to go I don’t know. But you know what, though I may not know, God knows. He is God and if He wants to He can make this storm cease immediately with just one word. One of my favourite verses of Scripture let's me know that God already knows the outcome,
“For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (AMP)
What a great promise! Do you understand what that means? That means that we can rest assured that God already knows what He has planned for us, for you and for me. Knowing that it is a good plan should give us great hope for our future no matter what we may be going through right now.
Yes, I thought, I know that, but I wanted more than that, I wanted God to give me some details.
I know His plan for me is a good plan. I know that I can expect a great outcome; a victorious outcome. Yet, I wanted more. Greedy? Perhaps. Curious? Maybe a little, nahhh, a lot.
Then I got what I asked for, I got more. Not exactly what I was expecting but it was more. God led me to Matthew 14:25-31. Read it now for yourself. Okay, I’ll give you a brief synopsis.
Matthew 14:25-31 tells us about the time the disciples, caught in a storm, saw Jesus walking on the sea. They thought He was a ghost and were afraid but Jesus told them, “Take courage! I AM! Stop being afraid!” (AMP). Then, Peter told Jesus that if it was really Him command him to come to Him on the water. Jesus, at that point said “Come!” and Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water towards Jesus.
“But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid” (verse 30 – JUB). The Bible goes on to tells us that at that moment Peter began to sink, Jesus reached out, caught Peter, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (verse 31 – AMP)
Okay God, I said, I’ve read the Scripture, what are You telling me?
Now, I have read this passage many times. I’ve heard it explained from the pulpit on several occasions but I had never seen what God was about to reveal to me. Perhaps you already know it but it was new to me, and I feel moved to share it with you today anyway.
“But when he saw the wind”…”when he saw the wind?”
Do you remember the little poem we used to say as children? The first two lines go like this, “Who can see the wind? Neither I nor you”. Exactly! We cannot see the wind! We can feel it, see the effects of it but we cannot see the wind with our natural eyes. Also, in the natural, we can wade into water but we cannot walk on water. So what was really going on here? What was God telling me?
Verse 25 says, “And in the fourth watch [between 3:00 – 6:00 a.m.] of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea.” (AMP)
The fourth watch, the hours just before dawn – it’s darkest before the dawn. It was in the darkest hours of the storm when Jesus came to them, and it’s when He comes to us.
Just before this, Jesus had been up in the hills by Himself praying – He had been in the presence of God for hours even while the storm was raging (verse 23). Jesus’ focus was God. He was already in the realm of the supernatural. His faith was well bolstered from being in God’s presence, for faith comes by hearing and hearing from the Word of God. (Romans 10:17) Jesus was able to confidently stand on the Word of God. So this was Jesus’ state of being by the time the disciples saw Him – Jesus was walking in the supernatural realm.
When Peter called out to Jesus in the midst of the storm, “command me to come to You on the water”, Peter was asking Jesus to cause him to do what He was doing – walking by faith on the Word of God. Jesus’ “Come!” was an invitation for Peter to step into the supernatural with Him. And, Peter accepted Jesus’ invitation. He stepped out of his comfort zone, his place of security (the boat) and into the supernatural realm.
Jesus had given Peter one word on which to place his faith, “Come!”, and clinging to that word from Jesus and trusting in Jesus, the Word of God (john 1:1, 14), he stepped on to the water and into the supernatural.
In the midst of this ferocious storm, all Peter received was one word from Jesus. Think about this for a moment. What word have you been given?
I’ve received so many promises from Jesus in the midst of this storm I’m in, yet when I asked for more a few days ago – just a little something more – “Come!”, I too received this simple invitation. “Come!” That’s all I got, and it’s all you get at the dawn of 2016.
Then God said to me, “There is a difference between you and Peter. Peter did not have this story, he was living it as it happened but you have it as an example, a lesson. Peter stepped into the supernatural and when He saw the wind, he tried to understand what he was seeing with his own human understanding. He stopped focusing on the Word, on Jesus, and he began to sink.”
Proverbs 3:5 is very clear, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.” (NLT)
God said that when I step into the supernatural, “do not try to figure out what you are seeing, do not look left or right, keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, do not lose focus, meditate on the Word that I gave to you, do not be distracted”.
I understood what God was revealing to me and I believe!
I believe that I am in the fourth watch when it appears to be darkest, belying the fact that dawn is fast approaching. I have stepped out of my boat and into the supernatural.
I am determined to keep focused on Jesus and the Word He gave to me. I do not want to sink under the waves like Peter.
I am determined that no matter what I see, hear, feel, taste or smell, I will not depend on my own understanding and natural human reasoning.
I choose to believe that Jesus is my Restorer. I choose to believe that Jesus is all that I need Him to be. I choose to trust Jesus completely to do what He says He will do.
Beloved ones, I have absolutely no doubt that Jesus wants me to share this revelation with you on this last day of 2015. Today I pray that you will accept His invitation to “Come!” out of your boat and step into the supernatural.
Amen †
Step into the Supernatural...Let’s get personal Shelley Johnson 30-Dec-2015
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