Growing up close to the beach was a very special blessing for this Arkansas-born and East Coast young girl.
Times spent in the sun (or on foggy days), sand and in the salt water and waves helped to make me the person that I am today, and this photo and quote really spoke to my heart this morning, as I consider what oceans I may cross in 2015.
Countless times I have stood on the shore looking out at the vastness of the ocean (Atlantic and Pacific) imagining the mighty and powerful God who not only designed and created the ocean, but is its' master.
One of my nephew's reactions, when he first saw the ocean as a little fella is a special memory, when he said "Mommy, where's the drain for that BIG water?" The ocean can make us feel so small and it's kind of scary isn't it?
It is no surprise that I married a handsome, tanned "surfer boy," and that our three sons surfed. We spent hours and hours and hours at the beach through the years we lived in Southern California, and I've got the sun-damaged skin to prove it.
However, there came a time in my life, when I began to spend little or no time at the beach and the only time I got in the water was when my children and grandchildren were young. When I was a young girl and younger woman, I enjoyed body surfing and playing in the waves. At one point, I began to dislike the sand and became aware of the "big water," and I now realize that I just lost interest in the ocean and I also lost a measure of courage that had once allowed me to leave the shore.
To me, courage is being willing (even when we don't feel able) to "lose sight of the shore" in order to cross an ocean. Quite often those of us who suffer great sorrow and loss become shore huggers, because we are afraid of what might be out there in the unknown, perhaps because of what lies behind us or the pain and suffering that has affected our balance and courage for really living again.
What would it mean for you to "lose sight of the shore" that you might experience something greater and more powerful than you have yet to experience? Are you afraid of losing sight or letting go of what lies behind? Are you content to stay on the shore? Have you lost courage for living a life that would include leaving the "shore" somehow?
Relocating to the Rocky Mountain region in Northern Colorado has helped me understand that the shoreline of life is wherever we are living or in our hearts and minds. For me, it is important and that I be aware that I may become a "shore hugger," if I do not keep my eyes and heart focused on the One who is the master of the oceans, storms and seasons of my life.
I've been knocked down many times, when I have tried to leave the shore and venture out into the ocean literally and figuratively throughout my life. As I look ahead to 2015, I believe that it is time for me to imagine myself losing sight of the shore and being willing to cross an ocean, if I am going to live the life that God has planned for me. I have become cautious, careful and may lack the courage that I once possessed, because I have been hurt, but I'm ready to begin again with renewed courage.
Does any of what I am sharing resonate with you, as you look out over the "big water" of the unknown?
With Faith, Hope and Courage in Christ ALWAYS,
Angie "a mother like you"
amotherlikeme@gmail.com
www.amotherliikeme.info
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