‘Come,’ he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came towards Jesus.
Matthew 14:29 NIV
For many years now I have been accompanied by what is probably Henry David Thoreau's most famous poem ‘I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately.' In it, he describes how he didn't just want to live, but to live intensely. Now I am sure that Thoreau did not mean 'to take advantage of everything in life,’ but that his focus was on living thoughtfully - that is, having the end in mind.
In my own words, I put it this way: 'I go out into the world to live thoughtfully. I want to live intensively. Always on the lookout for new motifs, inspirations, or simply opportunities to take a piece of something new with me into my everyday life. This includes being constantly on the move as a form of transformation. That is not always agreeable. It is not always easy. Sometimes it is tiring and even painful when it comes to letting go. Letting go of familiar things, of thought patterns that have become dear to us, of tradition. Yes, perhaps even of people.
That sounds more like high waves and shallows when I bravely remind myself that we need both legs in the boat if we want to set off for new shores. And then Peter comes to my mind, back when he even got out of the boat with both his legs, in the middle of the lake, his eyes fixed firmly on Jesus.
So in the end, is it all a matter of perspective? Do I look back wistfully and forward anxiously, or am I more grateful for what has gone before and confident that things will work out well in the future?
We wander out into the world, no matter how big and far it may be for each of us personally. And this wandering, this transformation brings change - whether we want it or not. And that is good because this change creates space for growth, towards the neighbor and above all, towards God. A God who also calls me today to courageously get out of the boat, to leave the solid ground under my feet, and to throw myself completely into his powerful arms.