Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home.  After sending them home, he went up into the hills by himself to pray. Night fell while he was there alone.

Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!”

 But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!”

Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.”

“Yes, come,” Jesus said.”

Matthew 14:22-29 NLT

Somewhere in all the times I read these verses I missed the fact that this happened in the middle of the night. It was, as some versions say, the fourth watch of the night, which would have been between 3-6 AM. This means they had been up all night, they were in the middle of very rough waters, waves, and wind, plus it was DARK.  For some reason, this added realization of it being dark made this even more fearful for me as I read it again, and it helped me understand the disciples’ reaction even better.

Most of us know the rest of the story. Many people focus on Peter then taking his eyes off of Jesus and sinking, but I’m amazed that he was willing to walk to Jesus in the dark with horrendous water conditions. People also focus on Jesus’s next words about Peter’s “little faith”, but what I see is Jesus (without any hesitation whatsoever) immediately holding out His hand to Peter and rescuing him, not in admonishment, but in love and kindness. God’s strength is in our weakness. He longs and loves to rescue, even if our faith gets a little wobbly in the storm.

Heidi Dalton – Writer