Peter, don't look down!

Jesus, help me not to look down, but to keep my eyes on you. Amen!

The Apostles were in a boat when they saw Jesus walking across the water toward them! Peter yelled, "If that's really you, tell me to come to you." "Come," Jesus said. Peter jumped out and walked on the water to Jesus, but got scared and sank. Jesus caught him and said, "You don't have much faith. Why did you doubt?" He brought Peter to the boat, and all the Apostles worshipped Jesus.

Every kid knows the rule about being in high places: Don't look down! Whether you're climbing a tree or walking a balance beam in gymnastics, you don't feel as scared if you keep your eyes on what you're doing instead of looking at how high up you are.

The Apostles needed to learn that rule; Peter finds that out in this week's Gospel (Matthew 14:22-23), when he tries to walk on water to Jesus!

If you're walking on a balance beam and you look at the ground instead of your feet, you'll probably lose your balance. That's because you're concentrating on the ground instead of putting one foot in front of the other, and it makes you think about falling.

Peter did exactly that. When he looked right at Jesus and trusted Him, Peter could walk across the water, because he focused on what was important. But, when he looked down and thought, "Wait a minute -- people can't walk on water!" he started to sink.

Keeping your eyes on what's most important is always a good idea, whether you're watching your feet or watching God. In the Gospel story, Jesus taught Peter that if he focused on God, miracles could happen. But, if he looked down and got distracted by other things, he'd lose his balance for sure!