Stay in the Boat | When Life Feels Like a Storm

What do you do when the storm doesn't stop?

Peter sees Jesus walking across the water in the middle of a storm and asks Him for something remarkable. He does not ask Jesus to make the storm disappear. He asks Jesus to command him to walk through it.

And Peter does.

It is only when Peter takes his eyes off Jesus and begins looking at the wind and waves that he starts to sink. Then comes one of the simplest and most honest prayers in Scripture: “Lord, save me.”

Jesus reaches down, takes Peter by the hand, and brings him back into the boat.

For centuries, the Church has been called the Bark of Peter, the boat carrying God's people through the storms of this world. Christ never promised us a life without storms. There will be grief, fear, suffering, uncertainty, illness, loss, and moments when everything around us seems beyond our control.

But the answer is not to abandon the boat.

Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. When you fail and begin to sink, cry out to Him. Let Him take you by the hand. And remain in the place He has given us where we know we can encounter Him.

Stay in the boat.

“Lord, save me.”
Matthew 14:30

Matthew 14:22-33
19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 9, 2026