When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. Isa 43:2 (MSG)
Boat Load of Faith – Part 1
As kids, we used to go out in the boat all the time, mostly for fishing. We'd put the boat in, roar offshore, find a spot, turn the engine off, and throw the anchor overboard. I would often sit on the side of the boat and stare, wondering what was under the surface of that glassy water and how deep and cold it was. The anchor would pierce the top of it and sink to the bottom, connecting our boat to solid ground.
Jesse (husband) is a keen surfer, and he LOVES the ocean. He sits out the back, behind the breaking waves, waiting for sets to come in that he can ride to shore on his mal. I like swimming in the ocean and rivers, but I tend to stay in the shallows, where I can see and touch the bottom. The mysteriousness of what could be “lurking under the surface” plays havoc on my imagination! That and the number of times I watched Jaws (all of them) as a kid.
Life can be like that. An ocean full of circumstances and situations, things we can’t see coming…Things that tickle our feet as we walk through waters where we can’t see the bottom; full of both beautiful and terrifying creatures; brimming with life, but also carrying death. It can be tempting to live a life hovering above the surface and not venturing into the depths of it all, but staying safe, and dry and motionless. Staring into it, rather than jumping right on in.
I know my little analogy doesn’t completely work… But I’ve felt like my life has been like that for a long time. I've stuck to the shallows, wanting to see everything that is coming towards me, craving certainty, needing my feet firmly connected to the ground.
In Genesis 13, God promised Abram that he was going to do something new through him. He would start a new and different tribe that instead of being like the warring tribes around him, would be a collective of people that would be a blessing to others. In Genesis 15, God said to Abram, “Look into the night sky, and count the stars if you can… that's how many descendants you'll have.” And even though Abraham could see the stars and heard the voice of God, he couldn’t fathom the practicalities of how he and his wife would have a child. Even just one. He couldn’t see how on earth they would possess the land God had promised. He couldn’t figure it out. It was like sitting on a boat staring into a murky and dark ocean of impossibility. He asked God a question I’m pretty sure we’ve all asked, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure?”
How can we be sure?
If certainty were key in life, then we’d be able to study all the ways we can sure up our lives so that we can be certain about what will happen to and for us. But in this divine kingdom of love and grace, we live by faith, not certainty.
The key isn’t being able to stare into dark and murky water with x-ray vision, or be able to see everything that's coming at us. It's to have hope – that deep knowing inside ourselves – that no matter what we can or can’t see, the divine is within and around us; by our side through it all.
Faith.
“When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end — Because I am God, your personal God, The Holy of Israel, your Savior.” Isaiah 43:2 (MSG).
Go to Part 2 – Struggle and Hope and Anchors
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