Walking on Water

The KINDNESS of Jesus – rescuing us from our sin

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” Isaiah 12:2

Matthew 14:22-33.

I love this story. Jesus sends His disciples onto the lake ahead of Him. He wants time to pray. He knows exactly what will happen on the water. He knows exactly how they will react. He knows exactly what He will do. There is more that He needs His disciples to learn and understand of Him.

“Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come out to you on the water.”

Jesus says, “Come.”

Peter steps out, and for a moment everything else fades. He is focused on Jesus and he is safe. But then the waves catch his eyes. He realizes he is doing the impossible. This should not be happening, he’s going to drown! And it is in that moment that he begins to. With his eyes off of Jesus, Peter is back to relying on his own strength, and his own strength fails him. He calls out to Jesus to save him, and immediately Jesus takes hold of his hand and lifts him back up out of the waves and into the boat.

“Oh you of little faith. Why did you doubt?”

What are you afraid of? Where are you trying to walk – in your own strength? What have you pulled your eyes away from Jesus to focus your attention on instead?

Jesus is standing at arms length, ready to catch you. He is all knowing, fully capable and so loving. In His kindness, He wants to lift you from those places where you’re drowning in fear, disbelief, insecurities and pain. He wants to hear you call out to Him…. and He will save you.

Stormy Chalk Scenes

This craft is perfect for all ages. No matter how young, their scribbles will be a perfect storm. Give children black paper and chalk. We used white and blue to scribble waves and a stormy scene. You can spray the paper lightly with hairspray to set the chalk if desired. Place a strip of clear tape along the bottom of the page, aproximately 1-1/2 – 2 inches from the bottom. These will reinforce the paper for later. Use a craft knife to create 2 separate slits in the taped area. One longer, and the other shorter. Draw or print a Jesus picture on cardstock paper. Cut out and allow your child to decorate it. Draw and cut out a boat shape from brown paper. Glue both onto a craft stick. Slip each into a slit and allow your child to move the pieces to retell the story.

Fizzy Storm

Place a thin layer of baking soda in the bottom of a shallow baking dish. Add a plastic boat and Jesus figure. Squeeze a few drops of blue food coloring to a cup of white vinegar and add a dropper. Allow your child to experiment by dripping the blue vinegar onto the baking soda and watching the fizzy reaction it makes. Encourage them to retell the story as they play.

The Ground Is Stormy Water

The moment Peter took his eyes off of Jesus, he began to sink. Jesus asked, “Why did you doubt?” Had Peter fully trusted Jesus and kept His eyes focused on Jesus, he would not have begun to sink on the waters.

This activity will help your child begin to grasp the idea of trust. Place obstacles on the ground in a scattered pattern. We used stuffies as they are soft to step on and wouldn’t cause a dangerous trip hazard. Explain that your child will have to walk from one end of the stuffies, through the middle, to the other side. – without stepping on any stuffy. Sounds easy, right? Maybe give them a chance to try. Now, blindfold your child. Ask if they can do it now. Of course it will be too hard. Explain that it was also impossible for Peter to walk on the water like Jesus. He had to trust Jesus to keep him safe. Ask your child to trust you to lead them through the stuffies. Hold their hand and lead them carefully, using voice directions and gentle guidance to the other side. If you have multiple children, allow them to try to lead each other.

Jesus on a Jello Storm

Make (or buy) blue Jello cups. Turn a serving out onto a small plate and allow your child to chop at it with a spoon until it resembles course water. Add whipped cream for frothy waves. Set a teddy graham (“Jesus”) on the waves.

Add another apple slice boat with a cheese square sail if desired.