I woke up early this morning, about an hour before I had set my alarm clock to jar me back to consciousness. I was lying in my bed and praying before getting up to join in on an early morning prayer call. I remembered a time when I was swimming and got caught in a rip current. I began to feel fear creep over me, but I prayed and refused it. That experience was twenty five years ago; why would I let it bother me now? I wouldn't.
Have you ever gone swimming and been caught in a rip current? It can be a frightening experience. Many years ago I lived in Florida for a short time. I didn't know many people, and so, when my children went to school, I often went to the beach by myself. I always stick to the "Don't swim alone" guidelines, so when I went in the water, I would always talk to someone near me, and keep sight and awareness of them so I would have a "buddy" in case I needed one.
One afternoon, I went in the water and there was a man swimming nearby. We chatted briefly; it was a beautiful day and the water temperature was perfect. The sun was glistening on the waves. A perfect time to float around and enjoy the surf. I swam out to a distance that I knew was far enough for me; I floated and swam around for a while, keeping my eyes on the shore and my swim buddy.
After a while, I was a little tired of swimming, so I floated before starting back to shore. I rested for a few moments, flipped over and looked again; I had drifted further away from shore than I realized. I wasn't really worried as I was a strong swimmer, but I was much further out than I had been before I started to float. I headed back to shore. I was quite far from my swim buddy and I was a little nervous. How could I have drifted such a distance in such a short amount of time?
I began swimming with long, strong strokes. I checked again and saw that I was even further away than before I had started back. Now I was getting frightened. My swim buddy was far away and looked SMALL. No matter how hard I swam, I couldn't get closer to shore, and was actually being drawn further away. I didn't understand what was happening.
I thought of myself drowning and my children being left to grow up without me. There was a lifeguard on the shore, but I don't think he saw me and I didn't wave or yell for help; I didn't think he'd hear me and I needed to save my strength for swimming. I prayed to the Lord as I struggled against the tide.
Then I decided to swim parallel to the beach. I turned south and swam as hard as I could. I was able to make progress and to get closer to the shore after I had swum a few yards. I kept going and finally made it far enough in that I could stand. I was exhausted. I walked out of the water and sat on the sand for a few minutes to catch my breath. Then I walked back up the beach to where my things were. I had probably drifted a quarter of a mile or more before I was able to get out of the water. I saw my swim buddy and he said "Hey! There you are! I was worried but then I saw you swimming so I knew you were okay. You were really far out there! " I just laughed and said "Yeah, I was. Thanks for watching for me."
Some time later I learned that what I experienced was a rip current. I was watching a program on water safety, and discovered that what I had done as I was caught in the current was exactly what you need to do if you get trapped in one and can't escape. It's impossible to swim straight to shore and break free; you have to swim parallel and come in to shore gradually until you're past the beginning of that current. You can say it was instinct, but I know it was the Lord who gave me wisdom that I needed for the crisis I was in.
I feel that this morning, the Lord was showing me how easy it can be to drift into fear. We aren't paying attention, we're just floating along, and something unexpectedly draws us into a mindset that we weren't prepared for. It catches us by surprise, and instead of swimming away from it, we've let ourselves get caught in a powerful current. It can be overwhelming and we don't know what to do. I want to encourage anyone who's caught to call out to Jesus. He can give you wisdom to deal with your fear, wisdom on how to get free. He is your safety net, your peace. He can bring you to restful waters, where you can get back on your feet and gain strength again. He will teach you how to stay free if you will get your focus on him and keep it there. Just as he gave me wisdom to swim with the tide instead of against it, he'll show you how to swim free of fear. I wasn't afraid of being in the deep water, I was afraid of being swept away by forces that were too strong for me. In the same way, I'm not afraid to be in the depths of God, but I'm also not afraid of strong currents from the enemy or just life situations that try to drown me. I know who my Redeemer is, and that he will get me out of the most powerful tide of oppression if I reach out for him. I'm reminded of Peter, who walked on the water with the Jesus, but then looked at the waves and began to sink. He got his eyes on his situation and forgot the Lord. When he cried out, Jesus saved him. Just like you and me. We get our eyes off the Lord and onto the things that frighten us. If we cry out, like Peter did, he will rescue us and ask us why we doubted. And then give us another chance to start over, and everything we need to begin again and to succeed and do well.
I'm trusting Jesus today. As a matter of fact, I'm trusting Jesus for every day. God stopped by this morning and reminded me of how easy it is to get off track so that I could share my story, and maybe encourage someone else to look away from fear and look to him for wisdom and courage. May God bless you with his presence today.
Have you ever gone swimming and been caught in a rip current? It can be a frightening experience. Many years ago I lived in Florida for a short time. I didn't know many people, and so, when my children went to school, I often went to the beach by myself. I always stick to the "Don't swim alone" guidelines, so when I went in the water, I would always talk to someone near me, and keep sight and awareness of them so I would have a "buddy" in case I needed one.
One afternoon, I went in the water and there was a man swimming nearby. We chatted briefly; it was a beautiful day and the water temperature was perfect. The sun was glistening on the waves. A perfect time to float around and enjoy the surf. I swam out to a distance that I knew was far enough for me; I floated and swam around for a while, keeping my eyes on the shore and my swim buddy.
After a while, I was a little tired of swimming, so I floated before starting back to shore. I rested for a few moments, flipped over and looked again; I had drifted further away from shore than I realized. I wasn't really worried as I was a strong swimmer, but I was much further out than I had been before I started to float. I headed back to shore. I was quite far from my swim buddy and I was a little nervous. How could I have drifted such a distance in such a short amount of time?
I began swimming with long, strong strokes. I checked again and saw that I was even further away than before I had started back. Now I was getting frightened. My swim buddy was far away and looked SMALL. No matter how hard I swam, I couldn't get closer to shore, and was actually being drawn further away. I didn't understand what was happening.
I thought of myself drowning and my children being left to grow up without me. There was a lifeguard on the shore, but I don't think he saw me and I didn't wave or yell for help; I didn't think he'd hear me and I needed to save my strength for swimming. I prayed to the Lord as I struggled against the tide.
Then I decided to swim parallel to the beach. I turned south and swam as hard as I could. I was able to make progress and to get closer to the shore after I had swum a few yards. I kept going and finally made it far enough in that I could stand. I was exhausted. I walked out of the water and sat on the sand for a few minutes to catch my breath. Then I walked back up the beach to where my things were. I had probably drifted a quarter of a mile or more before I was able to get out of the water. I saw my swim buddy and he said "Hey! There you are! I was worried but then I saw you swimming so I knew you were okay. You were really far out there! " I just laughed and said "Yeah, I was. Thanks for watching for me."
Some time later I learned that what I experienced was a rip current. I was watching a program on water safety, and discovered that what I had done as I was caught in the current was exactly what you need to do if you get trapped in one and can't escape. It's impossible to swim straight to shore and break free; you have to swim parallel and come in to shore gradually until you're past the beginning of that current. You can say it was instinct, but I know it was the Lord who gave me wisdom that I needed for the crisis I was in.
I feel that this morning, the Lord was showing me how easy it can be to drift into fear. We aren't paying attention, we're just floating along, and something unexpectedly draws us into a mindset that we weren't prepared for. It catches us by surprise, and instead of swimming away from it, we've let ourselves get caught in a powerful current. It can be overwhelming and we don't know what to do. I want to encourage anyone who's caught to call out to Jesus. He can give you wisdom to deal with your fear, wisdom on how to get free. He is your safety net, your peace. He can bring you to restful waters, where you can get back on your feet and gain strength again. He will teach you how to stay free if you will get your focus on him and keep it there. Just as he gave me wisdom to swim with the tide instead of against it, he'll show you how to swim free of fear. I wasn't afraid of being in the deep water, I was afraid of being swept away by forces that were too strong for me. In the same way, I'm not afraid to be in the depths of God, but I'm also not afraid of strong currents from the enemy or just life situations that try to drown me. I know who my Redeemer is, and that he will get me out of the most powerful tide of oppression if I reach out for him. I'm reminded of Peter, who walked on the water with the Jesus, but then looked at the waves and began to sink. He got his eyes on his situation and forgot the Lord. When he cried out, Jesus saved him. Just like you and me. We get our eyes off the Lord and onto the things that frighten us. If we cry out, like Peter did, he will rescue us and ask us why we doubted. And then give us another chance to start over, and everything we need to begin again and to succeed and do well.
I'm trusting Jesus today. As a matter of fact, I'm trusting Jesus for every day. God stopped by this morning and reminded me of how easy it is to get off track so that I could share my story, and maybe encourage someone else to look away from fear and look to him for wisdom and courage. May God bless you with his presence today.
