And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” —Matthew14:28-30 NKJV

I have the wonderful pleasure of getting together with dearest friends every week for Bible study, prayer, fellowship—and really yummy home-baked snacks! One morning, right in the middle of deep conversation, a squirrel came and sat on the back porch railing and stared in at us. Just like that! We were distracted.

We talked about how hard it can be to focus for very long. How difficult it is to sit still and pay attention beyond just a short while. How easily our minds wander. And just how quickly we can become distracted by … stuff. We now call it “squirrel syndrome.”

It’s a fitting way to describe what can happen so easily right in the middle of our walk with Christ. Suddenly, there’s a worry. A concern. A frustration pops into view. We catch sight of a problem we don’t know how to solve. A difficulty blindsides us. A tsunami of life troubles hits us. Or it could be as simple as we’ve turned on the evening news. And even the good things in life can draw us away, consume our thoughts, and cause us to lose sight of the Anchor of our Souls.

Peter often gets a bad rap in the verse above because he took his eyes off Jesus. Yes, he did! But where, may I ask, are all the other disciples? Why, my goodness! They’re all still back in the swamping boat, certain they are looking at death in the face of the One walking toward them!

I love Peter’s heart here. He wanted so badly to walk out to Jesus, but he was scared out of his mind. So he begged Jesus, “Command me to come to You!”

Have you ever wanted more than anything to follow Jesus wherever He wanted you to go, but you were afraid of where He might send you? Or what He might ask of you? You knew the only way you would go was if Jesus commanded you to go? I have.

One time in particular stands out. We’d already lost our son and were now faced with the possibility of losing our daughter and grandbaby as well. I found myself asking God what more He could want from me than I’d already given. The response He pressed on me was, “Everything!” Fear instantly gripped my soul. Borne out of that season has come my oft-whispered prayer: “Lord, I don’t want to. Help me want to want to.”

The minute Peter’s feet hit the water, the storm intensified. That often happens when we commit to trusting and obeying Jesus, right? Things can begin to get tough, really tough. Peter did what most of us momentarily do—he looked around at his problem instead of keeping an unbroken focus on the One he was walking out to see. He was distracted by a gigantic “squirrel.”

While we often note Jesus’ walking on water and Peter’s failure, something else can be overlooked in this story. When one mountainous wave upon another threatened to pull Peter under, in the roar and darkness of the storm, he screamed out one of the shortest prayers in all of Scripture: “Lord! Save me!”  He turned from outward and inward to upward and Godward. In the face of fear, faith kicked in.

When Peter took his eyes off his distraction and put them back on Jesus, he impacted everyone in the boat. The inundated boat was soon to sink, and they were about to perish. Yet they, too, now chose to fix their eyes on Jesus and were willing to take on the weight of one more Person in the sinking boat. The instant Jesus stepped into the boat with them, the storm ceased, and they were safely at their destination.

That prayer of mine, “Help me want to want to”? Our daughter and baby came through with flying colors.

Father, chase away the “squirrels” of distraction and keep helping me “want to want to.” No matter what You want me to do or where You want me to go. I love You, Lord!

He drew me closer to His side,
I sought His will to know.
And in that will I now abide.
Wherever He leads I’ll go.

Wherever He leads I’ll go.
Wherever He leads I’ll go.
I’ll follow my Christ who loves me so
Wherever He leads I’ll go.

“Wherever He Leads I’ll Go,”
Hymn lyrics by B.B. McKinney
(Verse two and chorus)

In Him,
Donna Perkins

Sweet Selah Ministries 

Vision
To inspire a movement away from the belief that “busy is better”
and toward the truth of God’s Word that stillness and knowing
Him matter most—and will be reflected in more effective work and service

Mission
To offer biblical resources and retreats that help women pause (Selah)
and love God more deeply as they know Him more intimately (Sweet)

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