It Was An Epiphany

Beach Season is here.  You might be thinking that I need to check my calendar since it is officially Fall, but my favorite time for the beach is just beginning.  The crowds are dwindling but it is still warm enough to sit in front of the water and bury my toes deep in the sand. Most importantly, there are still quite a few Candy Kitchen's open with fudge sitting on their  shelves.  It would be  a crime to leave it there.

There is something about the ocean that calls to my spirit.  I love standing in front of that vast expanse of water with the waves crashing and receding.  It makes me realize just how big my God is to remember He created it all with just a word and that He could hold all of its volume in His hands.  Standing in front of the ocean makes me feel small and there is  comfort in feeling small sometimes.

I was thinking about the beach yesterday morning, and actually longing to feel that smallness, when I felt God whisper to my spirit, "You know, you could look at your problems the same way." 

It was an epiphany. What if I found comfort in my "smallness" when standing in front of my problems?  There are qualities of God that quiet my soul when I am standing in front of a sea of thundering waves.  Could those same qualities bring peace when my world was crashing down around me?

The ocean reminds me of His power; can my problems do the same?

You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds,

God our Savior,

the hope of all the ends of the earth

and of the farthest seas,

who formed the mountains by your power,

 having armed yourself with strength,

who stilled the roaring of the seas,

 the roaring of their waves. ~ Psalm 65:5-7

The science of the moon and tides remind me of His intelligence, do I trust His knowledge in trials?

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think,

according to the power at work within us, 

to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus,

 throughout all generations, forever and ever. ~Ephesians 3: 20-21

The life in the ocean waters remind me of His creativity. Could the God who formed the narwhal and the vampire squid be as inventive towards my struggles?

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,”

declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts. ~Isaiah 55:8-9

Too often, I try to handle my problems on my own. I spend only ten minutes praying and seeking God but hours, days and even months brainstorming on how I can resolve things.  What if I flipped that equation?  What if I embraced my smallness and remembered how big my God is?

 I bet it would be as glorious as a day at the beach.

~Cyndi Word