Did you ever witness the ever-familiar scene of a dad in a pool stretching out his hands for his son to jump into them? I've found myself poolside several times watching this very event unfold and the same things seem to come to mind. "Why is it so hard for him to jump? He's right there. If his arms are stretched out any farther, they'll turn into limp pool noodles floating in the water."
I try to imagine what is going through their minds. If I'm the dad, I probably start off enthusiastic, encouraging him with confidence, boosting courage-injecting words to help him leave the edge. After a while though, I might feel a little hurt. I'd start asking myself, "Why won't he trust me? Does he really think I'll miss him or let him drown?" I'd start backtracking to moments where I might have let him down or missed him before. And then I try to imagine what the boy is thinking. He's probably thinking about all the air in between where he is and where his dad is. He's probably preoccupied with all the endless movement of the water and the depth of it. He's probably thinking, "I know land, but I don't know water."
Does the boy even see or hear his dad?
Is this our scene, now...today? Are you the son or daughter wanting to jump, but, for whatever reason, you can't? Maybe you can't even hear him calling you, you can't see His outstretched arms reaching for you. All you can focus on is the doubts, questions, and fears in between where you are and where He's calling you to.
What keeps us from jumping? What keeps us from seeing, hearing, and trusting the One reaching for us?
Lesson 2
God calls us to the ledge more than once.
I think as Christians we can get "stuck in the pool," so to speak. We can forget that sometimes God calls us back to the ledge. The ledge symbolizes our self, and leaving it is what we're called to do daily, not just the one time when we were saved. It represents the constant struggle of trusting in ourselves or in God. And it represents opportunity - opportunity to leave what's been holding us down and to enter the One who can lift us up. Going to the ledge is usually never fun. In fact, it's usually painful. It brings back memories of the last time you were there. It means facing the unknown, confronting fears, and giving up something we may be holding a little too close. To make matters worse, each time it seems that He's taken a step back. He seems farther away, and we find ourselves struggling to want to let go, to trust him again. As we bend our knees and prepare for the leap we question, "I know he caught me the last time, but can He do it again?"
In the midst of doing all the good things, we can miss it, can't we? All the good Christian stuff can become just another lap in the pool, something we do without much heart or meaning. It can become a cover-up to just look the part, to look busy. It's important that we are always ready and willing to take our place on the ledge when called to it and that following Jesus doesn't become something we have to do but something we get to do.
When was the last time you stepped up to the dividing line of what was known and what was unknown? Has God been calling you out, but you've been so caught up with doing your laps that you haven't been able to hear him? Or maybe you've been keeping your distance. You've been hanging around the shallow end where it's safe - where His voice can't quite reach you. I would encourage you to stop swimming for a while and start listening. Stop treating God as a vacation spot where it's all about us and our needs and wants being met. God's Kingdom isn't Sandals. Heaven may be, but here... now... it's not. There are things to be done, and we're the vessels. We're the hands and feet.
There is another part of the story to the ever-familiar scene that we've been talking about. It's the ending. The scene always ends with the dad catching the son. It always ends with an embrace, endless smiles, and a deeper trust. We go to the ledge when called, because we know the one calling us. We let go of our securities, because we know that the one that's reaching for us is capable of catching us, of giving us what we really need. We jump because we know that there will be a happy ending. We know there will eventually be joy. Joy because we conquered something that was trying to keep us where we were. Joy because we didn't allow what was in between to stop us from jumping.
The ledge is opportunity. It's scary, and we don't want to get out of the warm waters. But it's the lift-off point to a deeper and closer relationship with our Father.
What are some things in your life that have come in between you and Him? What is it that's keeping you from leaving them on the ledge? Has God been trying to get your attention but you keep ignoring him because of what He might say or ask of you? Do you really believe that God is who He says He is? That He's capable, trustworthy, that He never allows us to go through things that we can't handle? That He works everything for the good of those who love him?
Maybe it's a good time to come out of the water, stand at the edge where the water meets your feet and just gaze at what you've been privileged to swim in. And as you see the greatness and vastness of God, as you discover what makes him God again, may you have new expectations of what swimming and jumping really means.
Romans 15:13
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
I try to imagine what is going through their minds. If I'm the dad, I probably start off enthusiastic, encouraging him with confidence, boosting courage-injecting words to help him leave the edge. After a while though, I might feel a little hurt. I'd start asking myself, "Why won't he trust me? Does he really think I'll miss him or let him drown?" I'd start backtracking to moments where I might have let him down or missed him before. And then I try to imagine what the boy is thinking. He's probably thinking about all the air in between where he is and where his dad is. He's probably preoccupied with all the endless movement of the water and the depth of it. He's probably thinking, "I know land, but I don't know water."
Does the boy even see or hear his dad?
Is this our scene, now...today? Are you the son or daughter wanting to jump, but, for whatever reason, you can't? Maybe you can't even hear him calling you, you can't see His outstretched arms reaching for you. All you can focus on is the doubts, questions, and fears in between where you are and where He's calling you to.
What keeps us from jumping? What keeps us from seeing, hearing, and trusting the One reaching for us?
Lesson 2
God calls us to the ledge more than once.
I think as Christians we can get "stuck in the pool," so to speak. We can forget that sometimes God calls us back to the ledge. The ledge symbolizes our self, and leaving it is what we're called to do daily, not just the one time when we were saved. It represents the constant struggle of trusting in ourselves or in God. And it represents opportunity - opportunity to leave what's been holding us down and to enter the One who can lift us up. Going to the ledge is usually never fun. In fact, it's usually painful. It brings back memories of the last time you were there. It means facing the unknown, confronting fears, and giving up something we may be holding a little too close. To make matters worse, each time it seems that He's taken a step back. He seems farther away, and we find ourselves struggling to want to let go, to trust him again. As we bend our knees and prepare for the leap we question, "I know he caught me the last time, but can He do it again?"
In the midst of doing all the good things, we can miss it, can't we? All the good Christian stuff can become just another lap in the pool, something we do without much heart or meaning. It can become a cover-up to just look the part, to look busy. It's important that we are always ready and willing to take our place on the ledge when called to it and that following Jesus doesn't become something we have to do but something we get to do.
When was the last time you stepped up to the dividing line of what was known and what was unknown? Has God been calling you out, but you've been so caught up with doing your laps that you haven't been able to hear him? Or maybe you've been keeping your distance. You've been hanging around the shallow end where it's safe - where His voice can't quite reach you. I would encourage you to stop swimming for a while and start listening. Stop treating God as a vacation spot where it's all about us and our needs and wants being met. God's Kingdom isn't Sandals. Heaven may be, but here... now... it's not. There are things to be done, and we're the vessels. We're the hands and feet.
There is another part of the story to the ever-familiar scene that we've been talking about. It's the ending. The scene always ends with the dad catching the son. It always ends with an embrace, endless smiles, and a deeper trust. We go to the ledge when called, because we know the one calling us. We let go of our securities, because we know that the one that's reaching for us is capable of catching us, of giving us what we really need. We jump because we know that there will be a happy ending. We know there will eventually be joy. Joy because we conquered something that was trying to keep us where we were. Joy because we didn't allow what was in between to stop us from jumping.
The ledge is opportunity. It's scary, and we don't want to get out of the warm waters. But it's the lift-off point to a deeper and closer relationship with our Father.
What are some things in your life that have come in between you and Him? What is it that's keeping you from leaving them on the ledge? Has God been trying to get your attention but you keep ignoring him because of what He might say or ask of you? Do you really believe that God is who He says He is? That He's capable, trustworthy, that He never allows us to go through things that we can't handle? That He works everything for the good of those who love him?
Maybe it's a good time to come out of the water, stand at the edge where the water meets your feet and just gaze at what you've been privileged to swim in. And as you see the greatness and vastness of God, as you discover what makes him God again, may you have new expectations of what swimming and jumping really means.
Romans 15:13
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
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