Friday, January 9, 2015

What We Can Learn About God From The Sea

People connect with nature. It's ingrained in us. When we climb to the top of a mountain or see a beautiful sunset, we take pictures and comment about the beauty. Even those without a belief in God recognize the beauty of nature. You don't hear people say, man I really hated that sunrise today. People would stare at that person like they'd lost their mind. What's not to like?

"This week, choose one facet of creation that you love - birds, trees, weather soil, water, light, children, sex, aging, sleep. Observe it, think about it, learn about it every chance you can, with this question in mind: if that element of creation were your only Bible, what would it tell you about God?"

I'm sure this sounds like some hippy dippy nonsense to a lot of people, but I love the idea that Brian McLaren lays out in the first chapter of We Make The Road By Walking. Instantly my mind went to the sea.

Whether locally overlooking the river as I run or walk the dog, or walking along the beach, looking at the ocean, I love the view and perspective of staring out into the distance over the water. And as I think about the parallels between God and the ocean, my mind begins to wonder and churn.

God is big and can invade the tiniest parts of our world.

From the ocean to the sea to the river, flowing into streams and into our water systems that we use for cleaning and drinking, water is everywhere. We, as humans, are mostly water. God is big like the ocean, everywhere and ever present. But God is also personal and intimate like the water in our homes. God flows in and out of every area and aspect of our lives. Even when we don't acknowledge that He's present, God's still there.

God is powerful.

One of my memories from my childhood is family vacations to the beach. My dad would take my siblings and me out into the water where we would try to catch waves and body surf. As a kid that wave would grab you and if you weren't prepared, it would drag you straight under sending nasty salt water straight up your nose! Occasionally, the tide would be pulling so far in one direction that after 20 minutes you wouldn't even be able to see your family because you had been dragged, almost unaware, farther down the ocean. The thing about the tide and the waves, is most of the time it doesn't look like anything's happening that could move you in such a powerful way. God has the power to completely overwhelm us. He has the power to overtake us and turn our lives upside down. He has the power to move us and take us place we didn't know we were going. But a lot of times, his power doesn't look like much. And he's working, even when we can't see it (something I need to remind myself of all the time).

God is refreshing.

A glass of water when you're thirsty. Jumping into the pool on a hot summer day. Taking a hot bath or shower after a long stressful day. At the right moment water can cool us down, help us forget about the stress of a day, and rejuvenate us. I love a hot shower. Especially right after a winter time run when I'm freezing. Nothing feels better than just standing and letting that hot water hit my body. The peace of God can take our stress away. It's refreshing. That's why Jesus called us to take his yoke. Because it's light. It eases our load that we waste too much time trying to carry.

This is just a short list and I could probably keep going and compile a super comprehensive list. But it's good to take a moment and reflect on how God is reflecting his character through his creation. While humans might be made an the image of God, his nature and character is reflected in all of creation.

No comments: