– oh how he loves me so –
When I look at this photo, I no longer see a little boy running back in forth between his sand castle and the ocean, bucket in hand, water sloshing, and sand flying, I see myself. I see myself standing ankle deep in the ocean. I look as small as a child compared to it’s great magnitude. Standing there in the shallow fully knowing if I kept walking deeper, I would sink; I’m held back by that fear. I see myself standing completely mystified by the ocean’s vastness, no end can be found. I see the reflection of his beauty all around me. I see myself running back to the ocean of his abundant grace, continuously and undeservingly, filling my bucket over and over. No matter how many times I fill my bucket, I find my arms never grow tired and the water never runs dry, yet it overflows. Time and time again I find myself carrying my bucket weighed down with shame, fear, sin, worry, doubt to his ocean of grace; he empties it, refills it, and I run away, just like this child in this photo, with his grace so abundantly sloshing from my bucket.
Lord, help me to turn around and admire how beautiful your love, how vast your grace. Help me to drop my bucket, and run fearlessly into the greatness of your ocean, of you grace.
– lord, i need you. oh how i need more of you –
