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Do not be afraid.

16 When it was evening, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 embarked in a boat, and went across the sea to Capernaum. It had already grown dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea was stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea[a] and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. 20 But he said to them, “It is I.[b] Do not be afraid.” 21 They wanted to take him into the boat, but the boat immediately arrived at the shore to which they were heading.-John6:16-21

This is the first time I'm reading this version of Jesus walking in the water. But what struck me the most is the last line in the gospel - 'They wanted to take him into the boat, but the boat immediately arrived at the shore to which they were heading.' I was touched by it because there are many times in my life when I made many plans, many proposals, many promises to God but in the end, He has another plan for me. I tried to make God give me what I want at a certain point in my life, but it was never granted. Though my request was not granted, God gave me a much better gift - I know and still learning Love. It is indeed true that God knows what is best for us.

Image courtesy: The Bible – History Channel

Don't be afraid

Jesus will be there for us.

45 Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46 After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

47 Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. 48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, 50 because they all saw him and were terrified.

Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 51 Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, 52 for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.-Mark6:45-52

The Gospel reading today is a continuation of yesterday's reading. Jesus gave a bigger-than-life challenge to His disciples - feed five thousand men (not counting the women and children) right on the spot. It was not His disciples who solved it, it was Jesus Himself who did the wonderful miracle of feeding thousands of men, women and children out of five loaves and two fishes only. Not only that, there were twelve wicker baskets of leftover, enough for Jesus and His disciples' journey ahead. Today, another challenge came to Jesus' disciples - fear. I am not sure if they were fearful of the wind and the waves, but they were definitely afraid of a ghost (it was actually Jesus walking at them). We all face many fears - fear of getting old, fear of being poor, fear of being alone, fear of failures, fear of making a new start, fear of new relationships, fear of getting hurt again, and so forth. But Jesus' words continue to ring today and until the end of time. "Take courage. It is I. Don't be afraid." Jesus is inviting us all not to be afraid. What is past belongs to the past. New beginnings do not have the same ending. Adventures are always new and they are never the same. Every venture has a different story and a different ending. Let not our hearts be troubled by fears and problems. Jesus will always be there to help us. He will even be the One to solve it for us.

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