Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid
The Reverend Shearon Sykes Williams, Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, August 13th, 2023
“Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Matthew 14: 22-33
It has been heartbreaking to see and hear about the devastation in Maui this week in the aftermath of the wildfires that were sparked on Tuesday night. One man described the scene as a huge blowtorch blazing through his neighborhood at unimaginable speed. The beautiful, historic town of Lahaina, which was the capitol of the Kingdom of Hawai’i, is a wasteland. The remains of over 93 people have been found as of this morning and approximately 1,200 buildings have been burned to the ground. One of those buildings was Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, which had been there since 1927. It had a gorgeous painting of a Native Hawaiian Kanaka Madonna holding the Christchild. The Anglican Church, of which we are a part, has an interesting history in Hawai’i. Hawaiian King Kamehameha IV and his wife, Queen Emma, were Anglican. They invited the Church of England to establish the Church of Hawaiʻi, which was the state and national church of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi from 1862 until 1893, when the Hawaiian monarchy was overthrown.
There are currently four Episcopal Churches on Maui and they have had a strong shared outreach ministry for many years. They drive a care van all over the island, distributing food, clothing and hygiene items, and they are no doubt working day and night in the aftermath of the wildfires. Donations are being received through the Episcopal Diocese of Hawaii to support these efforts. The information went out in a parish email yesterday morning. So many people are doing everything they can to bring relief in overwhelming circumstances- churches, non-profits, government entities and individuals. We pray for everyone who is injured today. We pray for those who have died. We pray for the families and friends who are anxiously awaiting news of their loved ones. And we pray for all of the people who are working feverishly to bring relief and comfort. Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.
In our Gospel reading today, Jesus comes to his disciples when their boat is being tossed to and fro on a turbulent sea. Peter courageously steps out in faith, walking toward Jesus, but he becomes frightened by the heavy winds and he begins to sink. Jesus catches him and tells him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” The way that we hear these words, the tone, makes all the difference in how we interpret and understand them. Do we hear Jesus being harsh and judgmental toward Peter? Or do we hear comfort and encouragement? After all, Peter was the only one who had enough faith to get out of the boat in the first place. The rest of the disciples stayed put, presumably holding on for dear life as they were getting batted around. Peter alone was willing to take a risk. Earlier in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells his followers that if they have the size of a mustard seed they will be able to move mountains and that nothing will be impossible for them. Peter certainly has faith greater than the size of a mustard seed, but being steadfast in his faith was hard when he met resistance and violent winds. It was no doubt absolutely terrifying, but Jesus was there with arms outstretched to catch him. Stepping out on faith in hard to do, and remaining faithful is even harder, because we invariably meet with opposition.
But we take our cue from Jesus about how to stay the course when things get tough. Jesus always prayed before he did anything major. He prayed before today’s Gospel story. He prayed before the story that precedes the one for today, the Feeding of the 5,000. He didn’t rely on his own power to do anything. He relied on the power of God working in and through him. People were always flocking to Jesus and so much healing energy was always going out from him as he taught and preached and cured people of their illnesses. He knew that his spiritual reserves needed to be replenished, so after the feeding of the 5,000 and before today’s story of bringing peace to the disciples on the sea, he took time apart to pray. He didn’t just keep going and going and going. He knew that he had to pull himself away for time alone with God, so that he could come back rejuvenated and able to continue living out his vocation. If Jesus needed time in prayer, if Jesus needed a break, then we do too.
We don’t always know when hardship is coming our way, so it is important to build up our spiritual reserves so that we are ready when it does. Coming to church every Sunday to worship and recenter ourselves in God is so important. Praying every day in some form or fashion, even for a short while, builds up our reserves further, so that when something unexpected happens, we are able to weather the storm. Peter lost his focus. It is easy to do. Keeping our eyes on Jesus is the key. When we feel like life is threatening to overwhelm us, we can take a few minutes to get quiet, and picture Jesus coming to us, pulling us up and saying, Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”
I have no doubt that the Episcopal churches on Maui are gathering for worship in some form or fashion today. That is what we Christians do. We come together to glorify God in whatever circumstances we find ourselves, even when devastation is all around. And we come together to pray, to ask for comfort and courage in trying times. And then we go back out to be Jesus’ hands and heart in this world, loving our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus prayed and then went back into the fray, ministering to people’s needs. And I have no doubt that that is what the care van operated by the Episcopal churches in Maui is doing today, even as we gather today to pray for them, knowing that Jesus is with all of us saying, Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”