What Happens When You Step Out On Faith By Stepping Out Of The Boat

Step Out of the Boat

Step Out of the Boat

When I reflect on the story of the disciple Peter keeping his focus laser-sharp on Jesus as the Lord encouraged him to walk toward him in the water, I often think about the times in my life when I began to take a leap of faith and do something that seemed impossible or too difficult to achieve. Despite how it appeared, I began to step out anyway. As soon as some insurmountable obstacle popped up, it took me off focus and I allowed the blurry vision to shake me sometimes making me feel as if I was going to drown.

Oh, how I love the examples of current life situations playing out in the word of God! No matter what area of life we deal with, we can find examples of how this story of staying focused on the Lord works in our everyday lives. I remember writing a speech and presenting it at a Toastmasters International meeting a few years back and I told the story of me as a little girl visiting relatives in Tennessee for the first time since I was a baby.

Watch Out For the Mud

Imagine a young 8-year-old in a strange place around family members whom they had never met before during the Thanksgiving/Christmas Holiday timeframe. It is pretty cold for the state of Tennessee and of course, I don't feel comfortable around these people who are my unfamiliar family. I slowly find myself fitting in with my cousins who are in my age group as well as with aunts and uncles I had no clue existed before this visit. Despite the angst and apprehension at first, I begin to let my guard down and allow myself to become comfortable with being uncomfortable. I recall walking up a hill toward my cousin's home with my step-sister walking behind me. My focus was to get up that hill in the red clay-colored dirt hill in the rain that began to form again after raining a few hours earlier. I saw my cousin at the top and I was focused to get to them. I remember hearing the voice of my aunt Mae Francis yelling out to me from the bottom of the hill "watch out for the mud Niecey" and instead of staying focused toward the top, I turned around abruptly and shouted back to my aunt "what mud!?!".

What do YOU THINK happened next? Yes, you guessed it! As I turned back around to cast my attention on the goal I was aiming to achieve, I slipped and went careening down the hill in the wet red clay-colored mud. While sliding down the hill, I slammed into my sister and we both went down the hill covered from head to toe in mud! Can you picture yourself in a similar situation where this happened in YOUR LIFE? What did you do? How did you feel?

Well, of course, I was embarrassed and angry with myself at the same time, but at the end of the day, I learned a very valuable lesson. No matter if I fall or get off course, I have to REFOCUS! Get back up and try again. If at first, you don't succeed, dust yourself off and try again. You may stray or waiver in your faith in God sometimes, but thank God He makes a way for us to get back up and try again. Don't waste your opportunity to take a leap of faith and please whatever you do, don't drown in self-pity or give into self-sabotage tactics.

If you've ever felt uncomfortable speaking in front of an audience or on camera, join my free 5 Day Challenge with tips and tricks to help you get comfortable while being uncomfortable. Sign up for this event here.

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