As Covid-19 has extended itself almost a year, I have been attempting to get back into (fairly) good shape. Jenn and I have been eating healthier, I’ve been closing my calorie burning ring on my Apple Watch, and safely attending a kickboxing gym three times a week… ideally. As I have been plugging away the last few weeks, I have noticed subtle changes. A little toner, my cardio is better, but around the belly there’s just not as much difference. It has been frustrating for a number of reasons but what has been hitting the hardest is the simple reality of time. I’m just not 18 anymore. I can’t eat what I want when I want and retain my slim physique.
As I have gotten older, there are a few natural changes that have been occurring. Changes I have no control over but changes that require my attention. The double edged sword of it all is these changes require me to be more disciplined and more patient. I would argue that as humans we are naturally impatient. Naturally we desire instant gratification and the fastest results. Understand, our culture does not help. I don’t believe our culture created this, it just fine tuned a string that already played the key. I studied marketing, it is no secret that companies and their ads harp on speed, effectiveness, and how much more you are going to get. The trouble is, we have become conditioned to expect and feel entitled to this dispensation.
Dr. Henry Cloud’s fifth principle is Act Like An Ant. He mentions how Proverbs 6:6-8 is a piece of scripture that opened his eyes to the pace of work he needed to attain in order to finish his doctoral dissertation. He literally bought an ant farm (Dumb and Dumber style) and watched the ants create their tunnels and colony. What he noticed is they did this one grain at a time. Though his dissertation seemed like a giant beast to take on, he slowly worked on it one “grain” at a time.
Now the reality of it is most of us aren’t doing our dissertation. Though I do know a handful of you that have your doctorate and you can relate to this example better than most, we all go through moments, crossroads, seasons, whatever you want to call it, where we feel stuck or numb. Either overwhelmed because we don’t feel like we have time, the goal is too big, we’re afraid to fail, or we don’t have everything “figured out”.
In Matthew 14:22-36 there is a famous story of Jesus walking on water. The slightly less famous part is when Peter attempts to walk out to Jesus but begins to sink. I want to explore this story with the principle of acting like an ant. How challenges that seem to require a lot of can be tackled one step or one grain at a time.
“Well If I Could Walk On Water”
In Middle School and well into High School, my best friend Skyler and I were really into 80’s rock music. Def Leppard, Styx, Poison, Air Supply (shh don’t tell), and Eddy Money. One of my favorite Eddie Money songs is “Walk on Water”. The opening lines go:
Well if I could walk on water
And if I could find some way to prove
If I could walk on water would you believe in me
My love is so true
Now as a follower of Jesus I see the parallels between Money (singing about a girl) and Peter. Peter was looking to prove to Jesus his love, commitment, and faith. Possibly he was a thrill junky but based on his track record he really just wanted to prove his worth.
I don’t want to focus on what Peter (or Eddie Money for that matter) were willing to do, though that is something to note, but rather how he does it. Like all of life, this instance should be compared to Jesus’ approach. Jesus had just fed five-thousand people and before that he had been teaching. He is undoubtedly exhausted. He begins to dismiss the crowd and tells his disciples to get in a boat and go on ahead without him (22). Why? So he could be by himself to pray. This could be taught in an entire series on silence and solitude but for you extraverts out there you do need time to be alone with the Lord.
After Jesus had spent time with the Father he noticed the boat was pretty far off shore and “buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it” (24). So, he walked to them. I want to point out that there is nothing about Jesus’ demeanor that is anxious, worried, or hurried. It could have been easy to see this as an inconvenience. But Jesus saw it as an opportunity.
The disciples were naturally terrified of this figure coming towards them amidst the gale. Jesus’ three sentence succor not only reminds us that Christ is with us in the turmoil, but we have reason to be bold and unafraid. Peter decided this was a moment to prove this. However, I believe Peter was so focused on his destination, he did not think about the journey (cliché, I know).
When Peter asked Jesus to beckon him out of the boat, Jesus simply says, “Come.” He did not give him any tips, techniques, or even a prayer before stepping out. Peter wanted to go be out where Jesus was. Period. Remember, the disciples had just witness a pretty huge miracle. Jesus feeding the five-thousand. Peter (as well as the others) were probably still riding high from that and this may have been part of what gave Peter his boldness.
If I had a dollar for every time I’ve been excited about something but as soon as it turns to work I quit, I would be a wealthy man. I see the destination, the potential and I become all about it. I have had book ideas (multiple) and started writing for two days and then stop. I’ve has podcast ideas (multiple) and then when I think of the work needed to go into it, I never even start.
This again, is natural. We want the results but don’t want the grind. We want the gratification without the frustration. Rather than setting small, simple goals, we want to jump to the good stuff. Peter wanted to be part of the miracle. He wanted to experience Christ’s power. But after each step, reality started sinking in (pun unintended). He was not God and he was surrounded by waves and being pounded by gusts of wind. Before you know it, Peter is crying out to God to save him.
There are sermons on this story about keeping your eyes focused on Jesus, not being afraid of external circumstances, and trusting in the Lord. All of which are true and accurate. For the sake of this conversation I am focusing on the simple acts of taking each step. God calls us to take risks, step outside our comfort zone, and be courageous. But he does not force us to move our feet. To take each step no matter how small. Will he catch us if we fall? Yes. Will he correct us if we are on a wrong path? You bet. But we have to set small, simple goals for ourselves that we can stay faithful to.
Imagine if Peter would have focused just one step at a time. Could he have made it the whole way? What could you accomplish if you focused on one step at a time. Like Dr. Cloud, tackling something as big as a dissertation can be chipped away till it is smaller than a grain of sand. Like an ant building a colony, one grain at a time.
Lots And Lots Of Ants
Here is the caveat. We can’t do it alone. If you have seen Pixar’s A Bugs Life I need go no further. One ant does not build a tunnel or an entire colony. It is a lot of individual ants working towards the same goal. Being faithful to each grain at a time, together.
This is the church. A community of people all being faithful to their dreams, goals, and talents together. Working together to accomplish them. Lifting each other up and holding each other accountable. We again gravitate towards an individualistic and instant gratification culture that rubs up against this idea. I would argue that it has even seeped into the churches culture.
But the church always has the potential to be a community that builds something spectacular. Not just physically, but a community of faithful people that move one grain at a time. Christ might call one person to “go” there and another to “go” there, but it is up to the church community to help each other walk on the waters of life. The waters of Covid, the waters of paying bills, or the waters of broken relationships. Without this we will start to sink.
One thing worth noting that stood out to me while reading the text is that Jesus accompanied Peter back to the boat. Matthew notes, “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down.” (32, Italics added). A small observations, but this should bring tremendous comfort. No matter how small our steps are or no matter how far we sink, Christ never leaves our side.
We can be confident and faithful because he is confident and faithful. He will go before us as well as walk with us. Call us out and pick us up. No matter what he will walk us back to the boat.
In Christ’s words we should take courage and not be afraid. So take that small, simple step, because with Jesus, even the small and simple are good.
References:
Cloud, Henry. (2004). ‘9 Things You Simply Must Do: To Succeed In Love And Life’. MJF Books.
Harms, J. (1988). Walk on Water. Eddie Money. Nothing To Lose. Colombia Records.
Matthew 14:22-36; Proverbs 6:6-8