Learning to Walk in the Atmosphere of Faith
Text: Matthew 14:22–33; 2 Corinthians 5:7
Matthew 14:22-33 (NKJV)
Jesus Walks on the Sea
22 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. 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. 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.”
There are seasons in every believer’s life when God is not simply teaching us to believe Him; He is teaching us how to walk with Him. Faith is more than a moment at an altar. Faith is a daily walk. The Apostle Paul declared, “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
Walking speaks of consistency, trust, and complete dependence upon God. The Lord is looking for believers who are willing to take the next step even when they cannot see where that step will lead.
Recently, the Lord impressed this truth deeply upon my heart through two dreams (I do not build doctrine upon dreams because God’s written Word is our final authority). Every dream must be tested by Scripture. Yet throughout the Bible, God often used dreams to encourage, warn, and strengthen His servants. These dreams did not give me new doctrine; they reminded me of truths already established in God’s Word.
The first dream was one of preparation. Every step was difficult. My feet felt as though they were made of lead. There was opposition with every movement, and I sensed a fear of the great heights to which I was being lifted. In my natural life I do not fear heights, so I believe the Lord was revealing the weight of spiritual responsibility rather than physical fear.
Yet something remarkable happened. Every difficult step produced lift. Instead of the weight pulling me downward, every step carried me higher until I found myself walking among the clouds. Throughout the entire dream I knew the Holy Spirit was with me.
The message was unmistakable: I could never make this journey in my own strength. Every step upward required His presence.
Then came the second dream. I was standing on the back porch of my home. As I stepped off the porch, I stepped into the open air and began walking in the atmosphere itself. With every step I rose higher above stress, discouragement, fear, and the pressures of everyday life. Soon I found myself walking higher than the telephone poles. I remember saying to others, “I don’t know how you can’t do it.” When I awoke, my heart was filled with joy and encouragement.
The confidence I experienced in the second dream did not come from confidence in myself. It came because the Lord had already taught me through the first dream. What had once required great struggle had become a confident walk, not confidence in my ability, but confidence in God’s faithfulness. I knew I could take that step because I had already learned that the Holy Spirit would never leave me to walk alone.
The porch in the second dream also speaks to my heart. A porch is a place of transition. It is neither completely inside nor completely outside. It is the place where a decision is made. Every believer comes to moments where God calls us to step beyond what is familiar and trust Him with what lies ahead.
Peter had his boat.
Abraham had his homeland.
Moses had the backside of the desert.
Before every great work of God, there is a moment when faith must take one more step.
Matthew 14 records one of those moments. Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Jesus answered with one word: “Come.” Peter did not walk because he possessed unusual ability. He walked because Jesus spoke.
As long as Peter kept his eyes upon Christ, he did what was impossible in the natural. The miracle was never Peter’s ability; the miracle was Jesus’ presence.
I believe the first dream reveals how faith is developed. The second reveals what faith looks like after it has been tested. James tells us that the testing of our faith produces perseverance (James 1:2–4).
Paul reminds us that our present afflictions are producing for us an eternal weight of glory (2 Corinthians 4:17). The heavy steps in the first dream were not meant to stop me. They were preparing me. What seemed like resistance was actually God’s way of strengthening my faith for the journey ahead.
One truth stands above everything else: I never flew I walked. That is the language of Scripture. “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). “Walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16). “Enoch walked with God” (Genesis 5:24). God is not looking for people who chase spectacular experiences. He is looking for sons and daughters who know how to walk with Him every day. A steady walk with God will always accomplish more than a lifetime of chasing spiritual excitement.
As I reflected upon these dreams, I realized that airplanes do not overcome gravity because gravity disappears. They fly because another law is greater. In the same way, the Holy Spirit does not remove every burden from our lives, but He gives us a greater power that lifts us above what once held us down.
Zechariah declared, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the Lord of hosts (Zechariah 4:6). Jesus said, “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The lift in these dreams was not my strength. It was the Holy Spirit carrying me one step at a time.
These dreams have also reminded me of something that I never want to forget. The higher God lifts a person, the lower they must bow before Him. I fear pride far more than I fear spiritual heights. Pride is often undetectable, but humility keeps us near the cross. If God entrusts us with greater responsibility, our dependence upon Him must become even greater. My prayer is not, “Lord, make my name known.” My prayer is, “Lord, never let me lose Your presence.”
The timing of these dreams is deeply meaningful. Five years ago, during these very days, I was placed on a ventilator with COVID-19 and was not expected to survive. Yet by God’s mercy I walked out of that hospital ten days later. During those same days, my precious mother went home to be with the Lord. Remembering His faithfulness strengthens my faith today. The God who carried me through that valley is the same God who is leading me into this new season.
This past Sunday I made a vow before the Lord. When BASH is established in Steele, Missouri, the homeless, the poor, the forgotten, the Black, the Hispanic, the addicted, and every lost soul who walks through our doors will be loved with the love of Jesus Christ. They will not be overlooked. They will not be treated as less than anyone else. They will find a church where the ground is level at the foot of the cross.
We have just completed Evangelism BASH 2026, six weeks of reaching into our community with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. On Water Baptism Day we baptized more than thirty people. As I watched those lives publicly identify with Christ, I realized my burden has not become smaller it has become greater.
God does not lift us above the storm so we can look down on people. He lifts us above the storm so we can reach farther into it. If He increases our faith, it is so we can love more deeply. If He enlarges our ministry, it is so more broken people can find hope. If He opens new doors, it is so more sons and daughters can come home.
I believe the Lord is teaching His Church to walk in the atmosphere of faith not to escape this world, but to carry heaven’s hope into it. We are not called to live beneath fear, beneath discouragement, or beneath impossible circumstances. We are called to walk with Jesus. Every step of faith is sustained by the Holy Spirit. Every victory belongs to Christ. Every soul that is reached brings glory to God.
May we learn to walk in the atmosphere of faith until the world sees Jesus in us.
“Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.” Amos 3:7