Blog

by Ami Samuels

Have you ever taken a step in the wrong direction, a step that caused you to stumble? There have been steps that have tripped me up. I have tripped going upstairs, and one of my most embarrassing moments came when I tripped in a softball game.

It was my freshman year of high school, and I was coming in off of the bench to play in right field. It was in between innings, and I was so excited to enter the varsity game that I didn’t realize that my stirrup had come out of my shoe. For those of you who don’t know what I am talking about, before they made the socks with the colored stripes on the side, we wore long white socks and a colored stirrup sock that came up around the top of your calf and tucked under your heel in your cleats. As I rather enthusiastically ran into right field I tripped on my stirrup sock and went sailing into the wet grass. What an embarrassing moment.

However, today I would like to talk about taking a step in the right direction: one step towards a stronger, more committed relationship with Jesus.

I have found that in life if we aren’t moving forward, we are either standing still or moving in the other direction. So, if we aren’t taking steps toward a personal relationship with Jesus, we are either standing still or moving away from Him.

Where are you? Are you standing still, moving forward and growing in your relationship, or are you moving away from Jesus?

In Matthew 14:25-31, Jesus is walking on water toward the boat that the disciples are in. Not only do they see a man walking on water, but it is in the middle of the night and dark, with the wind and waves crashing against the boat. The disciples were terrified and cried out in fear. Picking up in verse 27: “But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’
‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter replied, ‘Tell me to come to you on the water.’
‘Come,’ Jesus said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat and walked on the water and came toward Jesus.”

Sometimes I think that people feel that Christianity is overwhelming and so instead of doing anything, they stay put. Peter could have stayed safely seated in the boat like the other disciples, but he listened to Jesus’ commands. Jesus told all of the disciples to “Take courage and don’t be afraid.” Peter was the only one to get out of the boat and the only one to experience walking on water with Jesus. I want to encourage you to NOT stay safely in your comfort zone but to take ONE STEP towards a closer personal relationship with Jesus.

What might that step look like for you?
Regular church attendance
Daily Bible reading
Daily prayer
Scripture memorization
Making better media choices
Stepping out in service

Pray about ONE STEP you can take to grow in your relationship with Christ this week and take that step toward Jesus.

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