When my children were toddlers there were times when they
wanted so badly to attempt something new but were fearful, such as jumping off
the side of the pool into the water. As a mother, I knew that I would catch them
but as the small child they doubted. It
was new for them…scary…unchartered waters.
I would plead for them to look at me instead of looking at the distance
between us. After coaxing and convincing,
our eyes would finally meet, followed by the leap, and falling into my arms…both of us
laughing, rejoicing and sharing in that moment.
‘See, I told you that you could do
it! I don’t know why you didn’t think
you could! Look at what you did! We had that moment of shared joy and
accomplishment.
Kay Warren, author of Choose Joy, encourages me to
see Jesus in a different way. Instead of
seeing Him the way most art depicts Him…somber… suffering… burdensome…she
entreats me to see Him for the way He was.
‘The Son of Man came, enjoying life’ Luke 7:34 (PH). I have always thought the above exchange
between Peter and Jesus was more about Peter’s lack of faith being
highlighted. This morning, however, I
believe it was similar to what I experienced with my own children when they
were young. It brought me such joy and
laughter when they attempted something beyond their confidence. I delighted in their sense of accomplishment,
scooping them up, hugging and kissing them.
My encouragement after the jump was to convince them of their abilities
and share in their new confidence.
This is the essence of Jesus Christ…joyful, encouraging, catching us, lifting us up in celebration when
we attempt to jump as a result of our faith.
We allow Him to catch us when we lose our breath from the jump. We rest in His arms as He carries us back
over to the side with a new found confidence.
We have shared in joyful intimacy and confident accomplishment. Sure, there will be more jumps to take, more leaps of faith and more water in our face with the plunge. But, He lovingly and delightfully looks into our
eyes as He holds us close and says, ‘And you didn’t think you could do it!’
And then we laugh because we don’t even know why we doubted.
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