"Jesus Walking on Water," a 1433 painting by Daniel of Uranc is in the Armenian Manuscript. (Photo Courtesy of John Sumwalt)
Special to United Methodist Insight | July 22, 2025
My wife Jo and I are reading Adam Hamilton’s book, “Simon Peter: Flawed but Faithful Disciple,” as part of a study group at the church we attend. Hamilton, who is pastor of Resurrection United Methodist Church in Kansas City, comments on the time Jesus comes to the disciples walking over the waves in the midst of a fierce storm on the Sea of Galilee. Hamilton shares what he said at the funeral of a teenage girl from his congregation who was tragically killed in a boating accident on the Lake of the Ozarks:
“This story was told and retold by the early church because it painted a picture of what Jesus does in our lives. He still comes to us on the water, in the darkness, in the storms of life, in the tragedy and pain-he still walks on the water, steps into our boats, or dives in the water with us. He holds us and says to us, ‘It is me, do not be afraid.”
Has Jesus come to you in a time of distress? I never cease to be amazed at the number of people who send me accounts of a moment in their lives when Jesus did just that.
Linda Nafziger-meiser, who at the time was pastor of the Hyde Park Mennonite Fellowship in Boise, Idaho, wrote to me in 2003 to share this hair-raising personal story:
“In 1982-86, my husband and I lived in the Shenandoah Valley near Harrisonburg, Virginia. One fall day, I spontaneously decided to use my time off from work to make applesauce, so I headed out of town to the apple orchards in the countryside, driving our little VW camper van. I was headed west in the left lane of a one-way street, coming up on an out-of-state vehicle in the right lane. When my front wheels were about even with their rear wheels, they started to turn right across my lane into a business on the left side of the street – right in my path.
There was no time to hit the brakes; they were right there, which in a camper van is "very" close. I screamed, and as I braced for the crash, I clearly saw Jesus in the passenger seat flinging out his arms to shield me from the impact. Irrationally, I thought, "Of course! He's going to die instead of me, once again." But there was no crash.
“Somehow, unbelievably, their car had crossed in front of my VW without any contact. The other driver started yelling, furious at me for nearly causing an accident. I wordlessly pointed at the one-way street sign and he and his passenger promptly turned even whiter. We stared at one another, shaking our heads in disbelief that we hadn't crashed, utterly shaken. When my legs quit shaking, I got back into my van and drove off -- and Jesus was still sitting in the passenger seat. I could turn my head and look right at him and then he seemed fainter, like looking at a dim star right on. But when I looked straight ahead and saw him with my peripheral vision, he was quite clear. When I spoke to him, he did not respond verbally or audibly, but his body language was clear, giving me a profound sense of peace and compassionate love.
“He didn't leave for several weeks, although the impressions grew fainter. During that time, I could always sense or see precisely where he was, never invasive but always nearby with that gentle, powerful grace and love and peace flowing from him directly into the desolate, shame-filled places within me.
“At that time, I was a young wife struggling with the poisonous after-effects of childhood sexual abuse. While I had already experienced much healing, there was still much more to go, and would continue to be for many more years. But so much of my steady transformation into health since then has built on that experience – the tangible sense of Jesus' vital connection and care and concern for me. The suicidal depressions that had shaped so much of my adolescent and young adult life ended at that point.
“Now, as a pastor, I take special joy in doing spiritual direction with women who have experienced sexual abuse or other childhood trauma. I tell them, when we begin meeting, that one of my primary aims in working with them in this way is to help make God's overwhelming love and care for them real and tangible. And this is as transforming for them as it has been for me.”
Linda’s story appears in my book, “Sharing Visions: Divine Revelations, Angels, & Holy Coincidences.” Do you have a story of Jesus or God’s presence in your life to share? Email me.
John Sumwalt
The Rev. John Sumwalt is a retired clergy member of the Wisconsin Annual Conference of The United Metrhodist Church pastor, and the author of “Vision Stories,” "Sharing Visions,” and “Shining Moments.”