I do not wish to talk with you today about miracles. That is, I do not want to talk about miracles of the phenomenal kind, the physical kind. Instead I do want to talk with you about miracles of another kind, a far more important kind.

I want to talk about life, our life, your life and mine – and there are miracles here also, miracles of spiritual and moral and personal kind.

These are the miracles which all of us have seen in the lives of God’s people all around us. Have you at some time seen someone stricken, smitten, painfully mauled by circumstance, and yet buoyed up when you could not see what held him up? I have.

Over and over, I have seen folks buffeted and bruised, suffering losses beyond words, in the drowning in disappointment, heartache, or sorrow, and yet somehow held up, sustained, when there was no visible means of support.

And I have said, “How can he do that?” All I could see about that fellow was turbulent storm, but in the midst of it he stood straight and tall, as on a footing invisible to me.

I have seen victory stand tall in the presence of defeat, joy walk in company with sorrow, triumph emerge out of tragedy.

These things bring to mind a word of Moses, a word spoken as he was giving his farewell message to his people before he climbed into the summits of Nebo. He said, “The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” (Dt 33:27).

 Never forget brothers and sisters that all around may be uncertainty and darkness, that the sea may rage and be turbulent with fierce storm-winds that blow, but, underneath there is the miracle of something supporting, upholding, sustaining.

I am talking about walking on the water, about staying on top when there is a lot down there which might engulf us and pull us under. The secret of walking on the water is a faith that overcomes fear.

When Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; but, “when he saw the wind, he was afraid.” Beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” As Jesus stretched out his hand to Peter, he said to him, “O man of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Well, Peter doubted, I suspect, because he took his eyes off Jesus and began to look at the waves and the wind.

In these lives of ours, yours and mine, there will come events to fill us with paralyzing fear and with doubt – But unless we can look past the immediate circumstance and get into focus on something beyond the threat.

On the seas where you and I must sail, there are many contrary winds that blow, many storms that rage, many perils that threaten.

Life is like this. It comes equipped with a built-in element of struggle, and not to accept this is to reject the very character of life itself.

We must not give up on living just because the storm is around us and the wind is in our face. We must go on living even when the going is not easy. If one has made up his mind to do everything possible to avoid thorns, then under no circumstances would she ever try to gather roses.

We find beauty at the risk of feeling pain. And if we are not to go down simply because a storm has come up, then we must keep our vision in focus on something beyond it.

Many of us often make the same mistake Peter did – we look too much at winds and waves, and we become afraid, and they pull us down.

But there are others of us and thank God for these who seem to walk through life on lighter feet.

They move through situation and circumstance with a certain optimistic hopefulness, a mood which seems to say that today is not the end, that “the best is yet to be.” Let us call this a spirit of buoyancy.

These people have a unique gift for staying on top of whatever they come upon. They seem to walk up to any situation carrying a victory with them as they come regardless of circumstances.  The word “circumstance” is one well-filled with meaning for our life. “Stance” means to stand and “circum” means around.

Circumstance is that which stands around us.

We are always in the presence of circumstances, sometimes pleasant, easy, and agreeable – and sometimes not so much.

Often we hear the phrase “under the circumstances.” These words frequently precede some sort of excuse for not doing some thing which we know we really ought to do:

“I wanted to help you, but I was busy, and so, under the circumstances, I couldn’t do it.”

The circumstances are there – all about us, always. The question is this: are we under them or on top of them?

Do they engulf us, imprison us, shackle us, enslave us? Or are we above them?

Usually we do not create them; many times we cannot change them; but we can refuse to be engulfed by them.

We, too, can be water-walkers, buoyed and borne up. For, after all, it is the victorious Christ who calls to us across the stormy sea saying, “Come unto me.” He stands triumphant; he has proved himself in storm.

By some he was hated, but he did not surrender to their hatred. He was “put down,” but did not go under. He was dead, yet he lives.

And across the winds that blow and the storms that rage, if we listen, we can hear his voice speaking still: “Take heart, it is I: do not be afraid.”

And, across the winds that blow and the storms that rage, if we listen, we can hear him say, “Come … come unto me.”

And, you know, my friend, if we but keep our eye on him, we can become water walkers.

Closing Prayer

We have come to this church this morning because we know we need the inspiration and love we find here to empower us to jump into our next week.

While we so often pray for our immediate needs, when we come together as a community of faith, we remember to pray for others. We remember others who have needs, who are facing an illness,  or struggling with family issues.

We are grateful that your continued care guides and comforts us. Even Jesus sometimes felt overwhelmed and needed to call on his heavenly Father for strength.

We too can turn to you for strength. Jesus was no stranger to fear, loneliness, pain, and anguish. He felt it all. Those are the shared experiences of all of us human beings, but with his help we can find peace and comfort.

Many of us face troubles that can leave us puzzled, worried, angry or sad. We may feel like the pieces of a puzzle before they are assembled into a complete picture. But God is always there. The Holy Spirit can take our burdens of life… the pain, the grief, the worry and make it into something beautiful and whole. God, we lay before you our burdens of life, the worry, the pain and ask you to make it into something beautiful and whole.

For this is our prayer:

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.