Our church was the host church for the Sunday Camp Meeting service on July 26. Members from our praise team lead the music and Pastor Jim preached a sermon on Matthew 14:22-33 entitled “Let’s Go Surfing!”
Scroll down to listen to a recording of the sermon and to follow through the summary.
PUMC Hosts the Camp Meeting Service
Ann Downham sings the offertory
Each week, different United Methodist Churches from the area serve as hosts for the service. The host churches usually supply the music, and their pastor gives the message.
There was a bit of a controversy at the beginning of the sermon, however. Someone had informed Pastor Jim that he was wearing the same shirt which he wore during his sermon last year (“Don’t Give Up“) on August 3, 2014.
Pastor Jim admitted that his shirt might have been the same, but he also insisted that his hair color and shoes had definitely changed since least year’s appearance. Thanks to the wonder of Internet website technology (and the fortunate serendipity that a picture was taken to mark last year’s service), we can hereby disprove- almost beyond despite- that Pastor Jim maybe did NOT wear the same shirt two years in a row! Similar- yes. But identical- absolutely not… possibly!
2014 shirt- Yellow and BLUE
2015 shirt: Yellow and WHITE (and the shoes are different too)
Yes, the shirts are very similar. But last year’s version clearly has blocks of dark blue. And it’s not simply a matter of lighting or exposure of the photographs (but there’s substantial disagreement on that claim). Upon close examination it can almost be shown that this year’s version is lighter; the blue stripes seem to have a white background instead of yellow. And yes- it wasn’t tucked in last year but it was tucked in this year. As for the shoes, we don’t have enough evidence to draw any conclusions. As for the hair… no comment…
Now that we’ve addressed these “important issues”… let’s get into the Word of God! God’s Word is the only truth we can depend on (as demonstrated by the above discussion about our “shirt mystery”).
Click the below “Play” button to begin the recording, then scroll down to follow along…
The scripture was from Matthew 14:22-33. Click the below drop down box to open…
Matthew 14:22-33
23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there.
Fishermen on the Sea of Galilee
24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.
25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.
26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.
27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”
28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”
29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”
31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
Let’s Go Surfin’ Now Everybody’s Learning How….
Ah yes. The 60s. Jan and Dean. The Beach Boys. And a host of other one-hit wonder groups. Every musical group was in the surfing craze for a while. But by most accounts, the Beach Boys led the “safari”. Here’s a clip from 1962 when the Beach Boys were really “Boys”…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOg1MxozVPc
Surfers almost have a spiritual connection with the board, water, and waves. When it’s done right, it looks easy. It’s graceful. Maybe that’s because of the “total focus of energy and attention by the surfer to the task of surfing. It’s absolutely meditative.” (Reference). Surfing reminds us that the life we’re given is where we need to spend our time. We’re all called by God to be “soul surfers.” to experience life as God would have it, to be all that we are called to be, to “have this attitude in you which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5) we can all learn from surfing.
| SURFING THE WAVES | WALKING WITH CHRIST |
| Become “one with the board.” |
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| Focus on the point of destination. |
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| Move together with the board to ride through life’s waves. |
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There are Five things about surfing that we can learn from to help us in our Spiritual walk with God.
1: Waves are Needed
If you don’t have waves, you can’t surf.
The Beach Boys sang:
“Catch a Wave and You’re Sitting on Top of the World”
But it’s all about timing. In our scripture, notice how Jesus arrives “just in time.” In order to catch a wave we need to paddle out and then stand up at just the right time. What if Peter just stepped out on to the water before Jesus called him? What if Peter acted on his own, outside of God’s timing?
Psalm 37:7 reminds us to: Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.
We need to wait for the “Jesus Moment”; sometimes we try to outrun Christ and we do things without Him. We sometimes miss out on blessings from God because we’re too far ahead of God’s timing. Are we so in tune with our Savior that we know His timing?
2: Must Move Toward the Waves
Surfers goes out towards the waves. They don’t wait for the waves to reach them. We can’t live in denial of a problem. In fact, that’s a silly thing to do since God has given us the power to get through the problems. If you avoid problems, like waves, they will get bigger and bigger.
- They have a game plan. They know which foot will be placed in front and which will be in back.
They can’t decide later on (in the midst of the wave) which stance feels more comfortable. - The board is waxed up according to the water conditions. Some waxes are more efficient in warm water, others in cold.
- Surfers also attach a leash to the ankle of their back foot. This is an important safeguard in the ocean since it keeps your board near you even when you bail out on a wave. Don’t loose your board!
In the same way, Christians need to be prepared. We need to be ready to meet problems head-on instead of sweeping them under the rug. Remember what David did when he encountered Goliath. He went straight toward him (1 Samuel 17). Saul’s army was frozen in fear. They weren’t moving forward or backwards. They were paralyzed.
But David went straight at that 9 foot wave and God gave him the victory.
We can move towards the waves when we keep our focus on God…
The attack by King Nebuchadnezzar came in threes. Each attack on Jerusalem is viewed as a “wave.”
HOWEVER… Israel kept a focus on God, and God offered this promise through Jeremiah…
Behold, I will bring it health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. And I will cause the captives of Judah and the captives of Israel to return, and will rebuild those places as at the first. NKJV
3: We Must Stand on a Surfboard
We need to face problems head on, but we do need to be prepared. Ephesians 6:10-18 is the Bible’s answer to the Boy Scouts motto; it tells us how to be prepared for problems before they arise:
Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.
- Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth
- and the body armor of God’s righteousness.
- For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.
- In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.
- Put on salvation as your helmet,
- and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation ®, copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.
Jesus is our Surf Board who will carry us through the Waves (problems) that we encounter. We need to practice habits like daily Bible reading and prayer which help us to stay on the board. We need daily “spiritual workouts.”
Too many people don’t take the “Surfboard” seriously enough. Too many are “Sitting on the Premisses” instead of “Standing on the Promises.” We need to stand on the Word of God. That’s what gives us the ability to ride out waves. The Word of God (from Jesus), gave Peter the confidence and strength to get out of the boat. God cares about every detail of our lives. We need God! He will give us the strength to ride out every storm of life.
“Jesus is the Answer. Above Him there’s no other. Jesus is the way”
4: We’re Going to Get Knocked Off Sometimes
Big waves will come along, and there will be times when we will momentarily get knocked off our Surfboard. When we take our eyes off of Jesus, or loose our grounding in the Word, we’ll be susceptible to temptation. Not knowing the Word and loosing focus on Jesus will take away our balance and we’ll be more likely to fall off.
But faith (and that leash built by daily workouts) will allow us to climb back on the Surfboard. To get back on the Surfboard, we must reach out; just as Peter cried out to the Lord before He saved him.
If we neglect daily Bible reading and prayer (those daily workouts), we’ll become spiritually off balanced. But as we grow in our relationship with God, as we increase in biblical knowledge, as our spirit comes more in tune the the Holy Spirit, we are able to maintain “Spiritual Balance” in our lives. The Psalmist writes in Psalm 119:37, we need to work on keeping our balance…
Turn away my eyes from beholding vanity, and revive me in Your way.
Working out to develop our Spiritual Balance gives us the faith that allows us to reach out and climb back on the Surfboard.
“Peter demonstrated faith that Christ could sustain him when he walked in obedience to His commands, for the storm had not subsided, the winds had not quieted, and the waves had not stilled. Suddenly the thing that had brought such fear to Peter no longer terrified him. Peter could face it with confidence because of the command of Christ.”
For you and me, the storms will come into our lives. Our faith is not a guarantee that our life will be one of ease, comfort, and pleasure. We see “wipeouts” over and over in the Bible:
Wipeouts will happen. But Christ has promised to be our Lifeguard and to pull us out of the water. We just have to keep the Surfboard close by (Matthew 14:27)…
But Jesus spoke to them at once.
“Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!”
5: We Will Finish Out the Ride
Once Peter was back in the boat, the wind and waves stopped. What do you do when the storm is over? When the lights come back on after having lost electrical power for a week, you might thank the electric company workers. But when we realize that Jesus has carried us through (yet another) storm, our only response is to worship Him and to be joyous that God gave us waves to ride, and to be thankful that He brought us through them.
And this is what the disciples did. God wants us to enjoy the ride!
Bad things will happen in life, but we don’t have to sink- we are in the world but not of the world. Our minds should be set on Christ, knowing that every day is a gift from God…
So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can.
And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God. NLT
When we get knocked off the board, God tells us to get back out there! And more than that, He’ll give us another wave to ride. We can enjoy every moment of our lives. Every day we have is a gift from God. Paul tells the Philippians to focus on Christ and the strength He has; not on ourselves and the weaknesses we endure…
Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. NLT
Don’t complain about having too little. Don’t complain about the big waves or the wipeouts. Is there anything in your life that can completely take you out? No! We can stand strong and ride ashore safely. Focus on Christ and God’s gift of life, and then Christ will give us the strength to get back on the board and to ride out the waves.
Even with the wave we call “death”- there’s a dry shore that we’ll arrive on.
Conclusion…
But a favorable tide floated the package and unerringly cast it ashore on the beach of Prestwick. The contents were soaked but perfectly useable. The adress was still legible, and the package reached the addressee.
So it is as we surf through this life upon God’s Surfboard which we call Jesus. We’ve been “stamped” with Jesus’ address, and He will carry us through the waves and land us safely on the other shore.
Quiz Time!
As you reflect on what you’ve just heard/read, give this quiz a try. If you don’t understand an answer (or if you disagree with the “correct” answer, post a comment)…
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