“If it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
—Matthew 14.28
When you’re afraid of the storm,
when wind and waves and weariness bully you,
you want your Savior.
You want to hear that comforting voice.
But don’t be fooled by relaxing easement.
Sometimes the Sovereign of Heaven and Heart
won’t becalm you, won’t hasten you to paradise,
but will make you say, “Have me join you.”
And if it is truly the One, you will.
The Beloved will draw you out
of the Boat of Assurance.
You will step into the deep unknown—
and you will sink. You will plunge
into the dark chaos, the sea formless and void.
You will be immersed in the baptismal drowning—
Jesus holding your hand no matter how deep you go.
And only then will you be raised—
delivered from the womb of the sea—
new and wet and infant, breathing in
with renewed passion this cherished life,
this miraculous new belonging.
And the storm outside will vanish within
the calm within.
__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net
August 4, 2020