My Mom had me in swimming lessons before I was old enough to even remember the early ones. I had taken every lesson offered at our local community pool (it was the 1980s and very much a thing) before I made it to middle school. I was also a latchkey kid who spent a LOT of summer hours at said community pool without direct supervision. Mom would drop me off on her lunch break and pick me up at the end of her workday (again, 1980s and that was normal). This made me good at two things, running up Mom’s tab in the concession stand and swimming.
I’ve been pretty strong in the water ever since. I’m no Michael Phelps, not even close actually. I’m probably not going to beat you in a race. I mean, maybe, if it were still the 80s. And if I weren’t a middle-aged mom. What I am good at now is not drowning. Treading water. Floating. Going with the flow. Keeping calm. Breathing. It turns out that these are valuable skills for life.
Life is rarely like a sunny summer afternoon at the swimming pool. Oh, sure, there are some of those days. However, I have found life to be a little more like the ocean than a swimming pool. There are a lot more variables in the ocean. There’s a lot less control. Waves, caused by all sorts of things nowhere near us, abound. They barely let us catch our breath. Storms creep up quickly. Swimming doesn’t really get us anywhere when the waves are crashing around us.
Swimming needs our power. When the waves are crashing, our power isn’t enough. We don’t focus on swimming. We focus on keeping our head above water and not drowning. We have to tap into the energy of the water and go with the waves. Storms and waves of life work the same way.
When life gets stormy and we rely too much on our own power, we struggle. We get frustrated because we’re not in control. Eventually, we tire and our strength gives out. In life, the way to counter this is to lean into God. We trust His power, not ours. He controls the storm. He gives us rest.
The often-told story of Jesus sleeping in the boat (I like the version in Mark chapter 4 because Jesus is not just asleep but comfortably asleep on a pillow.) while the storm rages and the disciples panic comes to mind. Jesus could rest because God’s power controlled the storm. The storm was needed to teach a lesson. The more in line we are with God’s will, the more we trust Him, the more we can ride the waves and rest in the storms.
This has never been truer for me than during my most recent a season of grief. I have done more of “letting go and letting God” than I ever have before. Just letting Him control the storm and the direction of the waves has brought me to new places that I never would’ve gotten on my own. I needed the storm like I needed the swimming lessons to learn how to swim. I needed to learn how to let go. I needed to learn how to trust. I needed to prioritize. I needed to learn to be patient when the storm lasted longer than I thought I could stand. Honestly, I’m still learning these skills.
I can feel God taking me in a new direction out of the storm. The waves have changed my course. Scripture and experience tell me I don’t have to fear or panic. That doesn’t mean I won’t, but I need not. I don’t know where the waves will take me but I know that I will need what I’ve learned. I am thankful for the storm. Thankful that God used it to get my attention. Thankful He used it to bring me closer to Him. Thankful He is using it to send me in the direction He has planned for me. I know who controls the storm and the waves. I know I can rest in Him.
What about you? Are you wearing out from trying to swim through the storm and waves with your own power? Are you battered from so many waves coming in all directions? A little water in the boat have you wanting to question Jesus? Ask Him for help and then be ready to receive it. Stop relying on your own power and ride it out with God.
