Expectations for my trip…skinny dippin’?

OK, now this person most likely will stand and look out at this huge lake and think “wow, on a hot day like today it would really nice to get in there and be refreshed…but…” Now those buts may be a number of things. They may not know if it is rocky or not so they throw on their water moccasins on…They want to make extra sure they can see  while under water so they  remember to bring the goggles…Ohhhh and what about a drop-off???Maybe I should just bring a life -jacket or a couple noodles “just in case.”

 

The next step obviously is to go over and test the water…so they canter up and with a sense of confidence they touch the water and draw back their toes quickly realizing the water is a bit chillier than they hoped but still manageable. Knowing deep down that the end result will be really refreshing if they can get up the nerve, they just decide to wade on in…Now a little wading leads to a little bit more wading…They get used to a little bit of it at a time…Meanwhile, they take off their moccasins because they just don’t really help all that much…and they take off their life jacket because let’s be serious, they’re just not going to drown that close to shore…they may even take off their goggles because they realize that the water is clear and they can still see a decent depth into the water…

 

However, as a guy I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that at least all of us guys can only wade to a certain point…for those of you who are slow, it happens to be near mid-thigh…At this point, it gets really uncomfortable in a hurry!!! It’s at this point where you are challenged to either go all the way in or all the way out…this in-between stuff just won’t cut it…

 

So, they take the obvious choice of heading back to shore so they can just run and dive right in feeling as though if they just had enough steam, they would be able to go all out before their mind told them all the reasons why they shouldn’t…Standing on the shore, their adrenaline starts to pump  with  an excitement and scare. There is an exhilaration knowing that everything inside of you wants nothing more than to take the plunge and yet your mind rifles through excuse after excuse of why you really don’t need or want make that drastic of a move…

 

In the midst of your struggling back and forth, if you were to just take off your suit, how long do you think it would take you to make a decision? How long do you think you would stay naked on the beach…Now I don’t know you, and some of you don’t know me, but I can assure you that most people would be in the water with an un-distracted purpose to be clothed by the depth of the water…

 

Many people start off looking at this whole “GOD” thing and realize that there is a lot to know and see…in fact it seems overwhelming for most when they first come in contact with Him…They decide they need to test the waters BUT….and this is the time where their fears, doubts and frustrations come into play like all of the safeties that the swimmer initially held onto…They go and touch the water and realize that God is refreshing but even a touch of Him sends a shock through their body…however, it draws them in further…

 

They decide to wade a bit deeper and allow themselves to open up a bit more with each step. They start attending a bible study or church, or listen/watch christians…maybe they try reading some of the bible to put some of the pieces together…Well, they wade a bit more and a bit more until there comes a time in their life when they get to a very uncomfortable place. They are half in and half out and their insides are not at ease at all…They realize that they can’t just stay where they are at, but now they know what it’s going to take to go all the way in…

 

So, they head to the beach and start stripping off the stuff they really don’t need…they reflect and realize that they had fears and doubts that were just unfounded…their perceptions of God were different than who He really is…They’ve seen some of His faithfulness and trust and know that He won’t let them drown.

 

As they stand on the beach with all sorts of thoughts going through their head and heart, they are torn…everything inside of them wants to leave all behind them to become abandoned to this one purpose…to love God with all their hearts, minds, strength and soul…and to love others as themsleves…BUT what about family? friends? job? house? wife? husband? kids? culture? church? what will people think? how are things going to be taken care of?

I stand on the shore gaining a steely resolve as I slowly start stripping down the barriers I’ve held onto for years…I expect that He will help me strip all the way down to a place where once again I come to a place where I face Him and show Him all of myself…good and bad and say you know what, this is who I am and where I have come from and while you know it all, I need to say it and show it for my health so that I can move on and take off into your depth without anything entangling or holding me back…

 

I believe He will show me Himself this upcoming year. I believe He will give me eyes to see the beauty that He sees in others. I believe I will be broken and torn apart by many things I will see, hear, taste, touch and smell this upcoming year. I believe I will spend nights crying for those He loves as I search to find a way to reveal His grace and mercy, adoration and splendor in them. I believe that I will become more of who He has created me to be. I believe I will be filled and emptied and filled again…I believe that there will be a freedom immersed in His depths that I’d never have known if I were to be jumping in with everything on…I expect to be liberated and I expect that what He does through me will also be done to sooooo many more that we come in contact with and those who remain here standing firm in prayer holding me up to Him so that He would be my foundation…

 

I expect to learn over and over again that this is not my home…I’m just passing through to take as many back with me as possible…