Have Courage: Jesus Reaches Us in the Storm

Aug 09, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Sent Into the Storm by Jesus’ Command

The disciples didn’t wander into chaos—Jesus deliberately placed them in the boat headed toward turbulent waters. Their exhaustion from rowing against the wind wasn’t punishment for failure but part of His purposeful direction. Storms don’t always mean we’ve strayed; sometimes they’re where God trains us to rely on His presence. The same hands that broke bread for thousands now steered them into a night of struggle. Trust grows when we realize Christ ordains even the winds that weary us. [45:04]

“Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.”
(Matthew 14:22, CSB)

Reflection: Where has Jesus intentionally placed you in a season of struggle? How might this hardship be shaping your trust in His purpose rather than punishing your weakness?

Day 2: Walking on Water When Jesus Says “Come”

Peter didn’t leap impulsively—he stepped out only after Jesus commanded it. The wind still roared, but Christ’s word turned liquid chaos into solid promise. What seems impossible becomes possible when His voice directs our steps. Faith isn’t ignoring the storm; it’s fixing our eyes on the One who rules it. Every “come” from Jesus carries the power to make unstable paths hold firm. [52:10]

“Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus.
(Matthew 14:29, CSB)

Reflection: What specific “come” is Jesus speaking to you right now? What fear keeps your feet planted in the boat instead of stepping onto His promise?

Day 3: Sinking Eyes and the Cry That Saves

Peter didn’t drown when he faltered—he sank only when he traded Christ’s command for the storm’s noise. Yet his desperate “Save me!” triggered an immediate rescue. Doubt doesn’t disqualify us; it redirects us to cling tighter to grace. Jesus’ grip on Peter mattered more than Peter’s grip on Jesus. Our worst moments become doorways for His closest intervention. [56:19]

But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught hold of him.
(Matthew 14:30–31, CSB)

Reflection: What circumstantial “wind” has lately dominated your focus? How might crying out “Save me!”—without excuses—deepen your experience of Christ’s relentless grace?

Day 4: Baptismal Identity Stronger Than Life’s Waves

The water that drowned Peter’s fear is the same water that seals our identity. Baptism isn’t our pledge to God but His claim on us—a declaration that we’re held by Christ’s righteousness, not our own resolve. When waves of failure or shame crash, we don’t rehearse our worth; we repeat, “I am baptized.” The font reminds us salvation depends on His grip, not our grip. [01:03:04]

We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.
(Romans 6:4–5, CSB)

Reflection: How would living as “baptized” shift your perspective on a current struggle? What old identity does the font’s water drown today?

Day 5: Living the “I Am Baptized” Reality Daily

Baptism isn’t a one-time event but a daily rhythm—drowning self-reliance, rising in Christ’s finished work. We don’t perform for approval; we rest in being named and claimed. When anxiety about the future or guilt over the past shouts, we whisper, “I am baptized.” This truth frees us to fail, forgive, and live lightly, anchored in what Jesus did, not what we do. [01:06:30]

Having been buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
(Colossians 2:12, CSB)

Reflection: What specific worry or accusation loses its power when you declare “I am baptized”? How can this truth shape your choices today?

Sermon Summary

A new school year brings the same old kind of questions: what is coming, who will be there, what will be hard, and whether the wind might be against the boat before the day is over. Matthew 14 meets that anxiety with a story where the disciples are not in the wrong place when the waves start pounding. Jesus made them get into the boat. Jesus sent them across the lake. Jesus put them in the place where the wind was against them.

Matthew places that hard night right after a long, heavy day. John the Baptist has been killed. Jesus has shown compassion to the crowds. Five loaves and two fish have become more than enough in his hands, with twelve baskets left over. The disciples have just seen what Jesus can do, and then Jesus sends them into exhausting work, rowing against the wind through the night.

The boat gets battered by the waves, but Jesus comes walking on the sea very early in the morning. The disciples, tired and afraid, think they are seeing a ghost. Jesus speaks into that fear immediately: “Have courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.” His word tells the truth when fear starts preaching lies. The wind is still blowing, the boat is still rocking, but Jesus is there, and his presence is enough.

Peter’s request sounds ridiculous: “Lord, if it’s you, command me to come to you on the water.” Jesus says, “Come,” and Peter walks because the word of Jesus is enough. The circumstances have not changed. The wind has not stopped. The only thing that changes is Peter’s focus. When Peter sees the strength of the wind more than the promise of Christ, he begins to sink.

Peter’s best prayer is not polished or impressive. It is simply, “Lord, save me.” Jesus responds immediately. Jesus does not wait for Peter to fix his faith or learn his lesson. Jesus reaches out, catches him, and holds him. Salvation is not how tightly Peter clings to Jesus. Salvation is Jesus refusing to let Peter go.

Baptism gives that same assurance in water and the word. Christ has reached down, named, claimed, washed, and joined the baptized to his death and resurrection. God’s promise does not expire, and the baptized life keeps returning to that font in repentance and resurrection. When the winds rise, the baptized believer does not stand on strong feelings or perfect faith, but on Christ who says, “Have courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Key Takeaways

1. Sent into the wind Jesus sends the disciples into the boat before the wind turns against them. Their struggle is not proof that they wandered away from him or that punishment has come. The hard place may be exactly where Christ has put his people so that his presence, promise, and purpose become clearer than smooth circumstances. [44:24]
2. Do not let fear preach Fear gives its own little sermons: alone, too much, no way through, Jesus is not enough. Jesus speaks a truer word into that noise: “Have courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.” The believer’s danger is not merely the storm outside, but the moment circumstances start sounding more certain than the voice of the crucified and risen Lord. [49:35]
3. Jesus holds sinking disciples Peter’s cry, “Lord, save me,” has no bargaining, no explanation, and no promise to do better next time. Jesus reaches immediately, before Peter fixes anything about himself. Salvation rests not on the strength of the disciple’s grip, but on Christ refusing to let go. [57:14]
4. Baptism gives a present name Baptism is not merely a past religious event, but a present reality: “I am baptized.” God’s promise in water and the word names, claims, and joins the baptized to Christ’s death and resurrection. When failure, accusation, fear, or shame speaks, baptism answers with the identity God has given. [1:04:41]
5. Identity is received, not built The age of self-determination tells a person to craft an image, build a brand, and carry the weight of a self-made name. Baptism says something far more freeing: the baptized are not their own. Christ did not die to make people tired from chasing worth, but to make them his. [1:05:26]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[41:31] - Back to School and Choppy Waters
[44:24] - Sent Into the Wind
[45:30] - From Loaves to the Boat
[46:25] - Battered by Waves
[48:32] - Jesus Comes on the Sea
[49:35] - Have Courage, It Is I
[51:47] - Peter Asks to Come
[54:01] - When the Wind Gets Loud
[56:03] - Lord, Save Me
[57:14] - Jesus Reaches Immediately
[59:45] - Baptism as Jesus’ Rescue
[1:04:16] - Returning Daily to Baptism
[1:06:47] - Not Built for Self-Determination
[1:08:21] - Held by Christ’s Promises

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Matthew 14:22-33
“Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. After dismissing the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. Well into the night, he was there alone. Meanwhile, the boat was already some distance from land, battered by the waves, because the wind was against them. Jesus came toward them walking on the sea very early in the morning. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. ‘It’s a ghost!’ they said, and they cried out in fear. Immediately Jesus spoke to them. ‘Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’ ‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter answered him, ‘command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those in the boat worshiped him and said, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’” [45:02] [45:19] [46:25] [48:32] [49:35] [51:47] [52:10] [54:01] [56:12] [57:14] [58:01]

Romans 6:3-5
“Or are you unaware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of his resurrection.”

Galatians 3:27
“For those of you who were baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ.”

Colossians 2:12
“when you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.”

Observation questions

In Matthew 14, what details show that the disciples were not out on the lake by accident, but were sent there by Jesus? [45:19]
What does the passage say about the condition of the boat, the wind, and the disciples before Jesus came to them? [46:25]
What changes, and what does not change, between the moment Peter begins walking on the water and the moment he begins to sink? [54:01]
According to Romans 6:3-5, Galatians 3:27, and Colossians 2:12, what does baptism join a believer to, and what new identity does it give?

Interpretation questions

If Jesus sent the disciples into the boat before the wind turned against them, what does that suggest about hard seasons that come even when a believer is following Christ? [44:24]
Jesus says, “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid,” before the wind stops. Why does that matter? What does it show about where peace is meant to come from? [49:35]
Peter’s cry is simply, “Lord, save me.” What does that short prayer show about real faith in a moment of desperation? [56:12]
Baptism is spoken of not just as something that happened in the past, but as a present reality: “I am baptized.” How does that shape the way a believer understands identity, failure, and assurance? [01:04:41]

Application questions

When life feels like rowing against the wind, what is the first story usually told in the heart—“I must have done something wrong,” “God is far from me,” or something else? How might Christ’s sending of the disciples into the storm challenge that story? [44:24]
Fear preaches its own message: “You’re alone,” “This is too much,” “Jesus is not enough.” Which of those fear-sermons feels most familiar right now, and what would it look like to answer it with Jesus’ words instead? [55:03]
Peter got into trouble when the wind became louder to him than the word of Jesus. In this season, what specific “winds” are most likely to pull attention away from Christ—work pressure, parenting concerns, health, money, loneliness, school, or something else? [54:47]
“Lord, save me” is not polished, impressive, or long. When was the last time prayer became that simple for you? What usually keeps prayer from being that honest? [56:14]
Salvation rests not on the strength of the disciple’s grip, but on Christ refusing to let go. Where is there a tendency to measure hope by the strength of personal faith, emotions, or performance instead of by Christ’s hold? [57:46]
“I am baptized” gives a present-tense identity. In a week when failure, shame, or anxiety speaks loudly, what would it look like to answer those accusations with the name and promise God has given? [01:04:48]
The world says a person must build a name, craft an image, and carry the weight of a self-made identity. Where does that pressure show up most strongly right now, and what freedom might come from belonging to Christ instead of trying to prove worth? [01:06:52]

Sermon Clips

58s

#HeldByGrace

“``Yes. I have failed. Yes. There are times I haven't trusted god. Yes. I have sinned by what I have done and what I haven't done. Yes. My faith has been weak, and I have failed. But here's the good news. That's not the complete story. The rest of the story is Christ Jesus has saved me. I was baptized. I belong to him, and he is holding on to me, declaring me to be his beloved son, his chosen daughter in whom in whom he is well pleased. So that when the winds blow and they will, when the waves rise and they will, When our faith feels weak and sometimes it does, our salvation doesn't rest on how tightly you are holding on to Jesus, but it rests on the one who is holding you and he doesn't let go.”

38s

#HopeInJesus

“Peter's hope that morning was never that he could walk on the water. His hope was that Jesus could walk on the water and that Jesus' word was enough. Your hope, my friends, isn't that your faith will never waver. Your hope and your confidence is that Jesus, Jesus never does. He came walking over all the chaos of this world could throw at him, stretched out his hand and went to the cross, walked out of that tomb and gave you a foretaste of what's coming for you one day.”

37s

#SavedByHisGrip

“And notice something beautiful here. Because it's not that Peter is walking on the water again. No. No. Jesus is holding Peter. Jesus has Peter in his arms. Jesus clinging to him. I mean, that's salvation. Salvation is not how tightly Peter can cling to Jesus. Rather, salvation is Jesus refusing to let Peter go. And so Peter safely into the arms of Jesus, Jesus says to him and asks him a question, you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

60s

#BaptizedDaily

“Luther and other writers remind us to return to our baptism every day, daily drowning the old Adam in repentance and in forgiveness, daily arising to live before God in purity and uprightness. So that when we talk about our baptism, we don't just simply say, I was baptized as a past event, but I am baptized. A present reality that continues to impact my day to day walk. So that when the world tries to define me, I can say, well, I that might be true, but I'm also baptized. When failures accuse me, I am baptized. When my circumstances make me afraid, I am baptized. When Satan himself whispers in my ear the accusation, why would God want someone like you? You can say, I don't know, but I'm baptized. He chose me. He called me. He made me his very own.”

71s

#PromiseOverCircumstance

“And suddenly, when the things around him become more certain than the word that Jesus had spoken to them, it's a place where we get in trouble too. A place where we find ourselves in desperate need of help. When our circumstances start preaching louder than God's promises. The diagnosis, the the finances, the marriage, the family, the politics, the new school year, the the media, the social media, the new year ahead. Our circumstances, oh, they preach to us. They tell us things like, you're alone. You can't handle this. This is too much. There's no way through this. Jesus isn't enough. You've gotta do something to save yourself. Meanwhile, Jesus speaks that same word. Have courage. It is I. Don't be afraid. Because there's a danger that comes when we see around us, when what we see around us begins to seem more powerful than the word and promises of the one who defeated the grave.”

52s

#ImmediateRescue

“And how does Jesus respond? Well, Peter, if you would have had a little bit more faith, I might be able to help you out. Should have trusted me more, Peter. Maybe he'll let Peter, like, kinda sink down a little bit into the water, teach him a lesson. Right? Because, you know, kinda throw him to the fishes. Listen to the very first word in verse 31. Immediately, immediately, Jesus reached out his hand, caught hold of him. Immediately. He doesn't tell Peter you gotta prove yourself. He doesn't wait for Peter to get his faith straightened out. He doesn't let him flail around in the water until he learns his lesson. Jesus reaches down and grabs him.”

41s

#CourageInChrist

“You can be sure of it. He washed you. He named and claimed you in your baptism. He fed you this morning his own body and blood through bread and wine as his words and promises declared. Not because you deserve it or you earned it, but because he loves you and he wants you to have courage, to know it is I. You don't be afraid because the one who holds you is stronger than any waves beneath you. Have courage. It is I. Don't be afraid.”

36s

#LordSaveMe

“If there's the best words of Peter in this whole passage, it's these words right here. Lord, save me. No explanation. No bargaining. No promises that I'll do better next time. It's just a prayer cried out in desperation, nowhere else to turn but to Jesus himself and saying, Lord, save me. Because even in the midst of his fear, in the midst of his focus that has shifted, even when he's turned in on himself and he has failed Jesus, he knows whose presence he is in, and so he cries out with desperation, Lord, save me.”

43s

#SentIntoTheStorm

“Tempted to think that if everything was good with us and Jesus and there wouldn't be any storms, the wind would always be at our back and life would be perfect. But into the erroneous way of thinking comes this story to us in Matthew chapter 14. And it shows us something different. It shows us a story in a place where the wind is against us might actually be the place where Jesus actually has sent you. And sometimes it's in the midst of the waves. It's in the midst of the wind that teaches Jesus teaches us what it's like to live with confidence in his presence, in his promise, and in his purpose.”

53s

#WordAndWater

“See that connection? In baptism, Jesus is the one that does the rescuing. He's reaching down to you like you reached down to Peter. It's not you reaching to him. The old sinner needs to be drowned. The new creation rises to new life in Christ. Your sins are forgiven not because the there's something magical about that water in the font, but because Jesus attaches his promise, a powerful promise to that water through his word. The same Jesus who said to Peter, come, has spoken his declarative word over you when you were baptized in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit. When you trust, you can trust Jesus. When he attaches his word to the promise of that water, you can trust what he says.”

56s

#IdentityInBaptism

“You've got a new identity, an identity beyond any report card you're gonna get this year, an identity beyond losing your job, an identity beyond the diagnosis that comes or when cancer enters the picture or when dementia takes away memories you once hold so dearly, not even when you fail, not even when your faith feels weak. You've been baptized into Christ. You have put on Christ. You belong to him. It only happens to you once because we don't need to be baptized more than once because God's promises don't expire. He doesn't change his mind. He's washed you in the water and the word and you belong to him. And as a Christian, we continually return to our baptism not to repeat it, but to remember and to trust what God did and promised there.”

40s

#WhenJesusSaysCome

“Peter had his doubts. Lord, if it's you, but he has heard the voice of Jesus. And now he trusts the word Jesus has given to him. And Peter walks on the water not because all of a sudden he's gotten some superpower or he's come, all of a sudden become, like, somehow buoyant in and of himself or or the water had become firm. No. He's walking on the water because Jesus said, come. The wind's still blowing. The wave's still rolling. The circumstances haven't changed. But Peter has the word of Jesus, the command to come, and that word is enough.”

45s

#FearIsNotFact

“In other words, don't let your fear tell you what is true. Don't let your imagination run away with you. Don't don't assume that because the wind is against you, I am not with you. Have courage. It is I. Don't be afraid. Hearing the voice of Jesus must have bought incredible comfort to disciples because they've heard this voice. They've seen what this voice could do just earlier in the day, a prayer to heaven and five loaves of bread and two fish were enough to satisfy an entire crowd.”

42s

#TrustTheCommand

“And now the question isn't, can Jesus walk on the water? The question is, can Peter trust the word of God, the word of Jesus when Jesus calls him out onto it? And notice it is a command. Jesus doesn't say, hey, Peter. I guess if you got nothing better to do, you might as well give it a try and see how you do. He doesn't tell him, Peter, you know, give it a you know, just give it a whirl or maybe, I guess, but he actually commands him, orders him to come. And Peter does. Climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water, and he came toward Jesus.”

39s

#GuardYourFocus

“For us as followers of Jesus, they may that can look like a small drift there. Our eyes gradually our guys gradually turning away from Christ, our ears less attentive to his word and and being in his word, our confidence shifting instead of his promises to to zen instead only the things we can see and touch and think we can control and maybe a gradual shift away from following Jesus. But for Peter, it's way more dramatic. He sinks. And beginning to sink, he cries out, Lord, save me.”

69s

#EyesOnTheWord

“In fact, that word is so much enough that Matthew tells us that that Peter makes some progress and that he appears to be closer to Jesus, but in the midst of getting closer to Jesus, something changes. And it is not Jesus. It is not Jesus' word. It is not the circumstances in which Peter finds himself in everything that has been the same. Only thing that changes is where Peter is focused. Verse 30 tells us about that. But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid. Now the wind had been there all along. It's not something new. The waves were there when Peter stepped out of the boat. The storm of type was already raging. Peter was walking on the water. The circumstances hasn't changed in the midst of it all. What changed was it was Peter's focus. When Peter begins to pay more attention to the wind around him than the word of God, he finds himself in deep trouble.”

29s

#FaithAmidAccusation

“It's especially promised and important when we think about the ways the old evil foe likes to work. Planting seeds of doubt in our hearts and our minds. The evil foe who wants us to to look at our failures, to look at the times that you haven't trusted God, to look at your your sins, to look at how weak your faith is. And our faith this is the good news. Our faith doesn't have to pretend those accusations aren't true.”

57s

#ClaimedInBaptism

“But you don't have to have been there that morning Because the same Jesus who rescued Peter is the same Jesus who's rescued you. He's reached down and rescued you. And we saw that yesterday here at church on Saturday for three young ladies personally and visibly in the waters of of holy baptism. We're in the waters of baptism. It isn't god's or isn't your promise to god, rather it's god's promise to you. It's like that image of of Kim Young Soon who or Young Soo Kim rather who painted this image. It's on the screen as well. It's to both depict Jesus reaching down to Peter to rescue him. But I want you to think about that when it comes to the waters of your baptism that you have that assurance through water and the word that Jesus has reached down and claimed you as his own dear son, as his beloved daughter in whom you are well pleased. You've been joined to Jesus.”

49s

#VoiceThatCalms

“For one night when they were on that lake, there was a danger of their own lives. And not only was the wind and the waves against them, the water was getting into the boat and it was beginning to swamp and Jesus is sleeping and they wake him up and they say, don't you care that we drown? And then Jesus gets up and he doesn't talk to the disciples. He speaks to the wind and the waves and he says, be still and they are. They know the power of the voice that have said, have courage. It is I. Do not be afraid. The wind may be blowing. The waves are still pounding. The boat is still rocking, but Jesus is there and his presence and his word is enough for 11 of the disciples.”

36s

#ComeDespiteDoubt

“For 11 of the disciples, take heart. It is I. Don't be afraid is enough. But there is one disciple. There is one disciple who in the midst of hearing this voice declares to Jesus, Lord, if it's you, Peter answered him, command to come to you on the water. A ridiculous statement, a ridiculous question, a question filled with doubt. No one can do that. And yet Jesus says to him, come.”

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St. Paul Lutheran Church Harlingen, Texas This sermon · AI assistant

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