Playing it Safe

In today’s first reading the widow from Zarephath was going to make a final meal for her and her son before they were to die from starvation, yet she was willing to offer that to Elijah the prophet when asked. Her jar of flour and jug of oil did not run dry for an entire year, “until the day when the LORD sends rain upon the earth.” (1 Kings 17:14) The jar of flour became the Bread of Life, Jesus, who provides for those who make their lives a total gift of self to him.

We want God to do great things but we don’t provide him the opportunity, we play it safe just in case He doesn’t come through for us.  When Jesus sent out his twelve disciples, he told them, “take nothing for the journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let no one take a second tunic.” (Luke 9:2) Jesus was forcing his disciples to trust him. God would have to come through for them because they had nothing else to fall back on.  Complete trust takes courage; it makes us vulnerable and makes us uncomfortable. We like finding refuge in what we already have rather than in what we hope God will provide. But following Christ calls for us to leave everything behind and follow Him, trusting even when we do not know where he is leading us. God wants to show us how he loves and cares for us. He wants to be our refuge.

Peter was willing to step out on the water with the waves crashing around him. He was the only one who was courageous enough to take that leap of faith. And when he was overcome with fear and began to sink, Jesus came through for him, he rescued Peter. We all have something in our lives that keeps us holding back, we are too afraid to step out of our comfort zone and let God be God and show us his majesty and great love for us. What will it take for us to quit playing it safe?