Leadership Is Being Willing to Fail: Deut. 1:26-40; Matthew 14: 22-33
We return this week with another installment on our series Christian Leadership for Present Times. I hope by now that you realize this series on leadership isn’t just for specific people or church leaders. We all have to show leadership in our faith. Leadership is being willing to share the Good News with others, being willing to stand for what is right, being a powerful prayer partner within your own church, family, or community. We all have to take ownership of our faith and stand up for God’s grace in this world. Sometimes that means we will fall flat on our faces…a total fail.
I remember a couple of years ago we decided to do a big Easter egg hunt on the Saturday before Easter. We put together signs and eggs to be hidden. We advertised and had crafts, games, and prizes for the kids. We made this big effort to bring all these kids and families to the church to see and experience the community of faith here. That morning, however, it was raining and around 52 degrees. Three kids showed up that day, and they only came because Kathy called and asked a friend to bring her kids over. The whole event failed miserably. But faith sees beyond failure. In every perceived shortcoming, there is lesson and a point of growth.
In our Gospel lesson, Peter sank, but Peter had to sink, so he would know he needed God. Sometimes we live with a bravado or overconfidence in our capabilities that make us think all will be well no matter what. We look to our talents, our abilities, our education, and we plow ahead without prayer, without spiritual preparation, confident in our own capabilities. When Peter saw Jesus, he hopped right out of the boat and started doing the miraculous.
But, as usual, the storm around him broke his confidence and fed his fear. Sadly, he took his eyes off Jesus and turned his attention only to the storm. When he did that, he sank. We have to remember in every struggle that our eyes must be “fixed and stayed” as the King James Version says on the Christ who will deliver us. Psalm 27 reminds us, “The Lord is my light and salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” Peter had to sink because he needed a reminder. He needed to turn his eyes from the storm ahead to Jesus whose power led him to walk on water. The moment Peter began to struggle he called out “Save me, Lord!” in verse 30. Jesus immediately pulls him back up to safety. Peter may have sunk, may have failed in his faith, but Jesus pulled him back up to safety when he was in danger. Never, ever, take your eyes off Jesus who is strong to empower, to save, and to deliver.
Sometimes, though, not only do we look away from Jesus, we become captivated on the belief we will fail. Israel missed the promise because they became obsessed with the fear of failure. Peter may have sunk, but Israel didn’t even try! They were told to go in and conquer the nations living in the promised land. Instead they went full stop and said no. They became overwhelmed by the strength of the people living there, believed they were powerless, and even talked about finding giants. They believed, ridiculously might I add, that God had brought them all this way just to have them destroyed.
Their worry and focus on the fear of failure wrongly convinced them that the same God who parted the Red Sea, got them out of Egypt, led them by a cloud and fiery pillar, fed them manna, and brought water out of a rock was now going to abandon them. God’s busy, and God’s not going to waste all that time for no reason. Like Peter, they became consumed by the fear and lost their faith. Peter had to learn that God would save him. The Israelites should have known that God had already saved them. Thus, they were sent back to the desert and told they would never be the ones to inherit God’s promise. That would be saved for their children. Never let the fear of failure consume you and cost you the promises coming from God’s goodness and power.
Finally, like Peter, let your doubts and questions lead you back to faith in the Holy One. When Jesus took hold of Peter and pulled him back up safely above the water, Jesus fusses at Peter for his behavior. “You have so little faith! Why did you doubt me?” Jesus says in verse 31. It’s two weeks in a row now that Jesus has asked about why his disciples have so little faith. Last week they wondered who this could be. This week, they get it. They worshipped him and proclaimed him to be the Son of God.
We all will fail from time to time. We all will fear that we are going to fail from time to time. Instead of letting those times be the collective story of your life, let them remind you to call out to Jesus, the Savior and Deliverer. I read an article the other day on living without regrets. One of the ten tips said to “turn failures into stepping-stones.” Essentially, look at failure as an opportunity to grow and learn a lesson. Failures are never the be all end all, instead, failure is just a lesson or stepping-stone in disguise.
Peter had to take the risk of getting out of the boat. If we never leave the boat, we will never grow. He ultimately sank; he failed. But that failure taught him to call out to Jesus to help him and pick him back up from the churning waters. Peter had to sink so he could see how amazing the strength of Jesus truly is. There was never a fear that Jesus was going to let him drown. Peter was loved, just as we are loved. God wasn’t going to let the Israelites be overpowered and destroyed in Canaan. God loved them and had made a promise.
But maybe the biggest question or lesson here isn’t about Peter sinking, Jesus walking on water, what level of faith they had, or even the short-sightedness and fear of the Israelites. All of that is about learning the lesson in the midst of failure. Before we can even begin to learn the lesson, though, we have to be willing to take the risk. Instead, maybe the question for us is this: do we trust Jesus enough to climb out of the boat in the first place?
Worship Video: https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/2154238181376260