Deeper Waters

As someone who lives on the coast, one might think that I would be at the beach every single weekend. In fact, there are a few islands and relaxing beach getaways for me to choose from on any given day, some just 40 minutes from me, others a little over an hour. It would all just depend on what I'd be in the mood for. However, if I had to choose between a beach or an unpaved trail in the mountains, I'm going with the latter option almost every time.

Yet, even with the vastness of the mountains and the wonder of their peaks and valleys, the thrill of their twists and turns, there is something especially unique that the beach communicates to the soul that no other display of nature does. The seeming endlessness of the waters naturally makes one question "what could be out there?"

There's a scripture that has made its way pretty deep into the soil of my heart lately. It's Psalm 107: 23-24, and it reads:

"Those who go down to the sea in ships,

Who do business on great waters,

They see the works of the Lord,

And His wonders in the deep. "

As I continued to sit with these couple of verses and really take my time with them, I started to think back to the few times that I have been to some of the different beaches out here. I would only let myself go out but so far, only allow myself to be nearly overtaken by just a few waves before making my way back to the safety of the shore.

But in the same way that the unknown nature of the ocean calls for us to come deeper, there are spiritual mysteries that call out. There are godly secrets that invite us to wade further, beyond the shores of our own security hidden within traditions and routines, and those who are brave enough to venture out will see and experience "the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep". There are hidden treasures and heavenly gems that those who remain on "shoreside" will never discover for themselves. God's kingdom is precious, the contents of His heart are invaluable, and yet He desires to share them with us. With you. But as the writer of Proverbs said, it is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search it out (Proverbs 25:2).

The secrets of the kingdom of God and the knowledge of His son Jesus Christ are MEANT for us to find, not for us to merely go about our daily lives being naive of while we burn ourselves out chasing things that carry no eternal weight. God desires to be sought after (Deut. 4:29, Ps. 27:8, 63:1, 8:17, Is 45:19, 55:6, Amos 5:4, Matt 7:7 just to name a few) in order that He would graciously and gladly reveal His wonders to His children.

Now, I'm no expert at "seeking God", nor am I always willing to wade into deeper waters, but knowing that the Lord awaits my searching pulls me in. It doesn't always look elaborate or beautiful according to my standards. Most times it just looks like me moving slowly through the scriptures in the morning, pausing where something sticks out to me, asking lots of questions and presenting my heart to the Lord in humility so that I'm not just seeing what I want to see. And the best part is that I know that I'm not just sitting here talking to myself in hopes that my own intellect can somehow retrieve the answer, but I'm asking Holy Spirit, God in me, the revealer of Truth Himself (John 16:13).

So I encourage you reader, push further out, the water's more than fine. It's glorious.