Waves
29 Jun 2010 2 Comments
Many of you know that recently I had the opportunity to take a small vacation. I get to spend almost a week down in Florida, my home state, without my kids or husband. It was hard to say goodbye to them for 6 days but I enjoyed getting some time away to think, reflect and relax. The one thing I was insistent upon was getting some time at the beach. Anyone who really knows me knows how I feel about the ocean. It is my version of heaven on Earth.
Something shifts in me when I step barefoot onto the sand and smell the saltwater of the ocean. I love the sound of the seagulls and the crashing of the waves. When I was a kid, my favorite thing to do at the beach was to play in the waves. I’d love to stand there and try to jump over each wave as it came and my goal was to avoid being knocked down and taken under the water. Sometimes I succeeded and sometimes I did not.
Being taken under is not particularly fun. You get saltwater in your eyes and up your nose and that can be very uncomfortable. However it was never painful enough to keep me from the water. I always felt so proud of myself when I survived a wave without being knocked over. I felt like I had conquered something. Each success built my confidence and I felt like I could handle a bigger wave next time.
On this trip I spent two days on the beach. My first day I had every intention of just laying in the sand and soaking up the sun. As I sat there watching the waves crash on the shore, I got the urge to run out into the water and play in the waves just like when I was a kid. Then, I started thinking about the saltwater getting in my eyes and in my sinuses. And the more I thought about that, the less I wanted to go out into the water. Was the fun and excitement of playing in the waves worth the moments of discomfort that would surely come?
As I sat there digging my toes into the sand, I started thinking about how this related to our lives. Everyday we have the same choice I faced that day…..the choice between sitting on the shore and watching the waves or taking a risk, getting out into the water and jumping in the waves. Sure, it’s safer on the shore. The view is lovely and there’s no chance of getting knocked over and having to fight the current to get to the surface for air. But there is also no excitement. No thrill. No victory. No chance to conquer, overcome and get stronger. No chance to really put our lives in His hands and trust Him. These are the places that grow our faith.
Yes, running out into the water and taking the waves head on poses a risk. You WILL get knocked down. You WILL get taken under. And you WILL experience some pain when those things happen. God never said that a life serving Him would be an easy one. But He did say the He would never leave us or forsake us.
A life in the waves will not always be an easy life. You’ll need to be ready for the parts that will be hard and uncomfortable. Each time you get knocked over, you’ll have to decide all over again if you’re going to stay and face the next wave or make your way back to safety on the shore. But with each wave, no matter if you stayed above the surface or were taken below, you have the opportunity to learn something. You learn your strengths and weaknesses. Then, you turn to face the next wave knowing more this time than you did the last. A life lived in the waves is an adventure.
So, my question is….what are you choosing?? Are you choosing to trust Him and run out into the water and play in the waves? Or are you choosing to stay on the shore??
That day on the beach, I decided to take the risk and run into the waves. I got knocked down a lot that day. But it was also one of the most fun days I’ve had in a long time. There were a few times that I looked back at the shore and thought about how much easier it would be to just go sit down and watch. But, it wouldn’t be nearly as fun……
My prayer for each of us is this: that we would choose to live a life of trust in Him and choose a life lived in the waves.
Jun 29, 2010 @ 02:23:48
Not only the risk of getting knocked down, but there’s also the risk of the undertow pulling you out deeper. But the excitement of trying to keep you ground and the waves pulling you one way or the other is exhilarating. You use your muscles and get tired, you get water up your nose, you get water in your eyes, you gotta cut and it burns, you got water monsters taking a nip at ya. Man at the cautions. But the experience you receive and the joy you get is unspeakable. Or you could build sandcastles that wither at the tides.
Good post Heather!
Jun 29, 2010 @ 03:24:27
Love reading your post. God Bless you!