Swimming Lessons

My son has a great description of his swimming ability.  He calls it "controlled drowning".  If honest reflection is made, that really is an accurate definition of the word swimming; at least from a human perspective.  Regardless of the swimmer's ability, they can only go for so long until they drown.  That can vary depending on the environment.  I don't know, but I would be curious, how well would many of the olympic swimmers do if thrown in the Pacific Ocean.  

When I was little my parents signed me up for swimming lessons.  These did not take place in a pool that started shallow and gradually and steadily got deeper.  These lessons took place in the Gulf of Mexico.  There were uneven depths.  One moment you were up to your knees and the next moment you were up to your nose.  There were the waves and the undertow that would quickly erase any progress I thought I was making in my ability as a swimmer.  We won't even mention all of the terrible sea monsters lurking below the surface.  To this day I will gladly walk on the beach, but I am not going out in that water.  

Do you want to know what would have drastically improved my experience?  A lifeline; a life jacket attached to a rope that a lifegurad had in their hand and could pull me in at anytime.  I could have walked around and not worried about my next step taking me over my head.  When a wave would knock me off my feet and be bouncing me around under the water I could have used the rope to pull myself  back to safety and if that did not work the lifeguard could have gently pulled me back to shore. 

The aposlte, Peter, did not get to practice walking on water in a pool or even a calm sea.  He did not have a life jacket or even arm floaties.  Jesus called him out in the middle of a crazy storm.  C.S. Lewis in his writing "A Slip of the Tounge" talks of how, in our jouney with Christ, we want the lifeline instead of the swimming lessons.  We don't want to dive in with Christ because we are afraid we will get swept away.  We want to stick our toe in the water a little.  We want to stay close to the shore where it is safe.  "Jesus, can we just take a walk along the beach so I can see your footprints in the sand?"  

What area is Jesus calling you deeper?  What arm floaties are you still wearing?  Maybe it is in your generosity or your willingness to let others know you are following Jesus.  Maybe you haven't began your journey with Jesus at all.  You have been walking along the edge of the water.  Some waves have splashed up on your feet, but you have never joined Jesus in the water.  I encouarage you to rip off the arm floaties and run streight out to the deep water.  That is where Jesus is at, and that is where He wants you to meet him.