The Frightened Fisherman

Now don’t miss this picture:

• Jesus sends the disciples away.

• Then he finds a place that overlooks the lake.

The lake is surrounded by mountains that slope into the Galilean Sea.

• On a clear moonlit night;

• One could easily look over the water and see what was taking place.

• In this case Jesus saw that his disciples were struggling against the elements;

• He was aware of their situation and he was praying for them.

Application:

• God knows everything about me.

• He sees everything that I’m going through.

• Therefore I need to heed the advice of Proverbs chapter 3 verse 5:

• ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”

Ill:

• One night a house caught fire and a young boy was forced to flee to the roof.

• The father stood on the ground below with outstretched arms, calling to his son, "Jump!”

• He knew the boy had to jump to save his life.

• All the boy could see, however, was flame, smoke, and blackness.

• As can be imagined, he was afraid to leave the roof.

• His father kept yelling: "Jump! I will catch you."

• But the boy protested, "Daddy, I can't see you."

• The father replied, "But I can see you and that's all that matters."

• The dad had a plan to benefit the child,

• But the child needed to respond to get the full benefits of that plan.

Ill:

• Dr. Helen Roseveare, missionary to Zaire, told the following story.

• "A mother at our mission station died after giving birth to a premature baby.

• We tried to improvise an incubator to keep the infant alive,

• But the only hot water bottle we had was beyond repair.

• So we asked the children to pray for the baby and for her sister.

• One of the girls responded.

'Dear God, please send a hot water bottle today. Tomorrow will be too late because by then the baby will be dead. And dear Lord, send a doll for the sister so she won't feel so lonely.'

• That afternoon a large package arrived from England.

• The children watched eagerly as we opened it.

• Much to their surprise, under some clothing was a hot water bottle!

• Immediately the girl who had prayed so earnestly started to dig deeper, exclaiming,

• 'If God sent that, I'm sure He also sent a doll!'

• And she was right!

• 5 months earlier God had led a ladies' group back in UK;

• To include both of those specific articles."

A small child believed:

• And God heard her prayers,

• Quote: “Before you call I will answer”

• Jesus knew the situation the disciples were experiencing,

• He also knew what he would do!

(3). Gods Help Is Always On Time (vs 26-27):

“At about four o'clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on the water. 26They were scared out of their wits. "A ghost!" they said, crying out in terror.

27But Jesus was quick to comfort them. "Courage, it's me. Don't be afraid."