Colliding with God

“All your waves and breakers have swept over me”

(Psalm 42:7).

Our family spent many vacations at the beach.  I enjoyed the ocean, but I never liked being caught by a wave.  I still remember having huge ones crash down on me, sucking me under and dragging me along the ocean floor.

One of my favorite contemporary Christian songs is “The Hurt and the Healer” by Mercy Me.  It reminds me of my wave experiences and the words are very appropriate to my life of pain.  The song acknowledges that even though part of us seems to die as we collide with God in the midst of our pain, He restores us, and one day all will be made plain.

Through my years of pain, I have had many “collisions” with God over His plan for my life.  At times I have felt that the waves of physical and emotional struggles were so overpowering that I would be drowned by them.  They have dragged me along the ocean floor leaving me bruised and exhausted, but God has breathed life back in to me time and time again and He has been glorified.

There is one lesson I learned from my beach experiences - the best thing to do when facing a wave is to dive in to it rather than run from it.  When I try and outrun a wave, I get caught and pulled under.  However, if I dive in to it, I am lifted up with it and brought safely down again.

I want to have the faith to face and dive in to the waves God brings into my life rather than running from them, trusting that He will lift me up and carry me on them.  I may still be dragged around, but I don’t need to fear.  He will bring me back to life.  And one day I will ride one of those waves out – all the way to the shores of eternity. 

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, sometimes I feel that my collisions with You are too much for me to withstand, but I know in faith that is not true.  As I face my waves of challenges, give me the courage to dive in to them, knowing You love me and will carry me through each one.  Amen.