What is it about the Ocean?

I spent this past week at the beach. We were with dear friends and the weather couldn’t have been better. I tried to read but quickly realized this was a week for pondering and waiting on the the Lord. Before you read further, I encourage you to listen to this song as it will provide the back drop for what I want to share. https://youtu.be/dy9nwe9_xzw

Just like Peter, the Lord does indeed call us out upon the water. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2014:22-33&version=NIV A metaphor for letting ourselves go to a place where we realize we are no longer in control. Walk with me from the beach into the ocean where with every step the water gets deeper until you are standing on your tippy toes and all you can see is the water swirling around you. That is what God wants from us. To be totally immersed in His Love that we can’t see anything else and therefore all we can do is trust in Him. Francois Fenelon in the book Let Go says, “Be careful of distractions and the desire to do too many things at once. Above all things, be faithful in the present moment and you will receive all the grace you need.”

Here are some other vignettes that came to my mind as I sat in solitude letting the waves carry me from one analogy to another. My hope is it will cause you to close your eyes and think about these things as if you were in a chair with the water from the waves washing over your feet.

1. No matter how long it has been, the ocean is still there when I return. When you walk up to the beach, you know the ocean is there. If you are quiet, you can hear the waves from far away. Isn’t that just like God. No matter how long it has been since you last sat in His presence, He is there welcoming you back with delight. If we are still, we can hear Him and know that He is God, our Creator.
2. I watched an accomplished surfer riding waves while someone else was getting their first lesson. Just like our faith journey, the veteran was able to stand up and navigate the power of the waves giving him a smooth ride toward shore. The beginner however, had a hard time getting up on the board. She fell off time and time again because she couldn’t find her balance as she was pushed forward by the force of the sea. Her persistence paid off in the end. She learned from her failures and eventually she caught a wave and to her surprise, was surfing in toward those who had been encouraging her after every wipeout.
3. In the early mornings as I sit on the beach awaiting the sunrise, there are folks out looking for pretty rocks and shells that the recent high tide has brought in overnight. Isn’t it interesting that you can tell which ones have been in the ocean the longest. They have been smoothed out and sometimes even made shiny by the constant churning of the waves crashing along the shore. The same can be said for us. Our lives become more beautiful as we age because we have been refined by trials and circumstances we have encountered along the way. Just like that pretty shell or rock, people can pick out that beauty out of a crowd.
4. The last lesson I will share comes from my love of boogie boarding. Waves can be powerful and when they are, handled properly, they can provide quite a ride toward shore. God is like a powerful wave. You have to choose the right one, sit back, and catch it just right. If you get ahead of yourself, it can lead to a nose dive and you being thrown off the board. Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death or a wipeout 🙂 If you sit and wait too long, the swell will pass and leave you behind.” Oswald Chambers says it this way: “Launch all on God, go out on the great swelling tide of His purpose.” Psalm 27;14 https://www.gotquestions.org/wait-on-the-Lord.html But when you time it correctly, the momentum of the wave lifts you up and sends you forward in such an exhilarating sort of way. God wants us to live life in the same way: Respecting His power and waiting Him. He does not want us to be out in front of Him nor does He want us to hang back when He is ready for us to be used by Him. So, as Hillsong sung in the song I suggested, “Will you call upon the Lord? He wants us to submit to his power and live life immersed in His desire to push us forward so that we can accomplish all He has in store for us.

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