"The people realized that God was at work among them in what Jesus had just done. They said, "This is the Prophet for sure, God's Prophet right here in Galilee!" Jesus saw that in their enthusiasm, they were about to grab him and make him king, so he slipped off and went back up the mountain to be by himself.In the evening this disciples went down to the seas, got in the boat, and headed back across the water to Capernaum. It had grown quite dark and Jesus had not yet returned. A huge wind blew up, churning the sea. They were maybe three or four miles out when they saw Jesus walking on the sea, quite near the boat. They were scared senseless, but he reassured them, "It's me, it's all right. Don't be afraid." So they took him on board. In no time they reached land on the exact spot they were headed to. ~John 6:14-21(The Message)

Last night the sunset over the lake was breathtaking. Those of us here at the retreat center stood looking out the large windows that face the water as the sky turned from blue to lavender, then pink to orange and yellow, painting a palette worthy of any Impressionistic artist. How does it happen? Why does it happen?

I don't know the answer to those questions but I know what the result is: awe, wonder, a sense of being present to something so much bigger than myself that I must stop and take note of it, perhaps breathe out a prayer of gratitude.

On the frozen lake, the ice houses dot the landscape with color…reds, blues, yellows…..tiny structures floating on water. Sitting beside the houses, trucks, cars and 4-wheelers, are in the ready for a quick, or leisurely, get-away, most likely driven by the windchill that sweeps across the lake. It is a truly Minnesota scene. There are few other places on the planet where people don't blink at such a sight. Houses, cars, lives being lived out held up by water.

The ancients believed that evil lurked below the surface of water, things unseen over which humans have no power. So the stories of Jesus walking on water showed his power to overcome the fears that can grip us. As he walked toward the disciples they knew that he indeed was the prophet they had longed for, the one who could over turn the tables of injustice, the one who could release them from their fear of the most unseen thing of all…death. He walked with confidence on the surface of what had the potential to swallow them up.

On the frozen Minnesota lake, suspended between the awe and majesty of the Creator's artistic hand, people sit now. They may not be having any particular transcendent moment or thinking thoughts about overcoming evil. But I bet they are sure having fun……and God is at work in that, too.