“And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’   And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’  He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased” (Matthew 14:25-32 ESV)

When we read the text above, we are usually reminded of the miraculous power of our Lord in walking on the water.  However, there is another principle in this reading that we should be sure to not miss.  Notice that Peter is allowed to walk on the water also.  While Peter maintains his focus on Jesus, all is well and he is able to do something that no other mortal man has ever done.  But when Peter takes his eyes off of Jesus, he sees the effect of the wind on the sea, and he becomes afraid.  Peter then began to sink.

Now think about our own lives.  When we keep our focus on Jesus, and make Him our top priority we can have that inner peace and confidence just as Peter did.  But when we focus our attention instead on the storms of life, the cares and concerns of this life, we too begin to sink.  We should make it our point to maintain our vigilance in keeping Jesus as our first priority.  Only then can we have that confidence and assurance of our eventual eternal home with Him.