Eighteenth Tuesday of Ordinary Time

“Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” After they got into the boat, the wind died down. Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.” 

After Jesus tells Peter to come to him, the disciple walks upon the water, but soon he becomes frightened and loses faith. In the same way, many of us call out to Jesus, but when he answers us and asks us to come to him, we hesitate. We let all our worldly worries weigh us down until we sink into a sea of anxiety and sin. However, just like Peter, Jesus always stretches his arm out to us to catch us when we fall. All we have to do is accept his help and let him help us up again. Then, we can begin to rebuild our faith and reaffirm our belief in Jesus as the Son of God and our Savior. If we do this, then we will be given the graces we need to proclaim Jesus to the world, to help the sick, and be healed in body, mind, and spirit.

Do we trust Jesus enough to come to him when he calls? How do we respond to Jesus’ offer of help when our faith fails us? How can we express our belief that Jesus is the Son of God in such a way to bring others to belief in him and to strengthen our own calling?

O Lord, heal us of our indecision, worries, and all those things that keep us from following you.

Amen.