Water has always scared me a bit - no, let me be more overt; "I'm deathly scared of it!" Actually, its power fascinates me! It's undoubtedly the most phenomenal force of nature in our physical world. And just like children love to mold wondrous images out of play dough, God loves to perform wondrous miracles out of water. I'm totally charmed by the Bible characters who witnessed the eye popping performances of God as He swished the bottom of lake floors. Remember Elisha? He observed God raise up a buried iron ax-head from a sandy river bed. And I too experienced a heart throbbing miracle of this God of the mysterious waters.
Last month my greatest fear came true. While visiting Jason, my son who lives in Hawaii, one of the activities on my itinerary was an after dark venture into the sea to view the secrets of the deep: Manta Rays!
"Ok, Mom. You can do it. You're going to jump in that water and hold on to me. Don't be scared; they won't bite your legs off. (Well that helped a lot!)
Courage. What is it? It's that God induced dependence on Christ where you know you will fail if God doesn't come through. For some, it's that mental stamina to call on the Holy Spirit's energy when you don't have any. For me that night, it was that ingrained capacity to press into my fear (past the strain of potential devastation), and just let go, trusting God to the outer limits of insanity.
But I'm not the only one in history who needed God to show up in a dilemma. Remember the night the disciples fought for survival amidst the midnight waves on the Sea of Galilee? Deserted! Nine hours of rowing for dear life! Trashing about in a 'water ride' they never signed up for. Then Jesus showed up walking on water. Upon arrival He peculiarly announced, "Be cheerful." What? Did He know something they didn't? Well, apparently!
The Greek word for cheerful (tharseite) means to take courage, to pluck up your spirit and place it in a source higher than yourself. Jesus wanted them to 'pluck up their spirits' in Him. He alone had the power to fulfill their deepest need that moment - safety, confidence, and even rescue for goodness sake.
How about you? What threatening quandary has found its way into your boat? In what ways do you need the courage of the Almighty to pluck up your spirit?
As I stood on the boat's edge with Jason contemplating the plunge, I prepared myself. So with fins in tact and one arm gripped in a dead lock with his, I jumped in. And glory hallelujah! What I saw underneath will forever remain an indelible impression of what awaits our heart's fancy when we abandon our fears and expect to see God's glorious majesty unfold.
A fellow daughter of Christ the King,
Pam
Friends, watch this! Yes, it's for real... the actual video in Hawaii where Pam swims with the manta rays! See it here on youtube.com or visit Pam's blog for the 45-second amazing video!
