The gospel lesson for this weekend is Matthew 14, the famous lesson of Jesus walking on water as witnessed by His disciples. Tom chose to preach his sermon on the gospel today, and it made me think about my relationship with my dad.

As Jesus approaches them walking on the water, He invites Peter to walk toward Him. Peter has a decision to make, to stay in the boat, or to have faith and walk toward Jesus. Choices in life when you must have faith can take on many forms. For me, my choice was about forgiveness. About 15 years ago, my relationship with my dad became rocky, then turbulent, and finally landed at virtually nonexistent. Years passed with little contact and my heart becoming more filled with negative energy. It is this hardened heart that God intended to change. I knew that He was directing me to mend my soul by mending my relationship with my dad. I resisted for quite some time, probably out of hurt, anger, fear, and complacency. After all, confronting these things in our lives is not easy! Unlike Peter, I was not instantly faithful and I “stayed in my boat” for a while. But eventually, with faith, I stepped out of the boat and walked where Jesus was leading me. To my surprise, it was much easier than I thought. I decided to forgive as I have been forgiven, and it released the chains around my heart. It certainly doesn’t change the past, but it has profoundly changed the future. My son knows his Grampy, and my dad knows he is forgiven and will not leave this world wondering if he is loved.

The only reason I share this story with you, is that I truly believe many of us have these choices in our lives to make. Forgiveness is about stepping out of your boat and believing in your faith enough to move past the hurt or anger. I’m certain if you look around, you can see where Jesus is inviting you to step out of your boat and walk in faith toward Him. God bless!

Amanda