Psalm 69: 1-3, 13-15:
“Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God……But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your mercy answer me. With your faithful help rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me. “
We were finally in Florida! I had been looking forward to these few days away to visit my son at college (and frankly, get some much-needed sunshine) probably since New Years! (The “winter blues” are real people…living in cold, dreary, cloudy weather for weeks really starts to eat at your soul. As I get older, being a “snowbird” sounds more and more appealing. 🙂 My husband, 16-year-old son and I had arranged to take a day trip with my college son down to the Florida Keys. For as long as my kids had attended college in Florida, we had never made the trip down there, so we decided to seize the moment. I made reservations to go snorkeling and eat lunch along the beach.
After a long drive, we arrived just in time for our boat ride out to the reef. The captain mentioned it was a “little rough” on the water today, but the snorkeling should still be good. (I should have taken that as my first clue!) Although I love (looking at) the water, can swim, and had even snorkeled before (yes, it was years ago on my honeymoon, but still…), I was not prepared for what I felt when I jumped into the water that day. Deep down, I was a little nervous because it was a “little rough”, but I kept telling myself “I can do this!” and “It’ll be great!”. Well, it wasn’t…. Even though I listened to instructions, I jumped in that water, did not hold my breath as the snorkel went under and I swallowed a ton of salt water. That’s when panic set in. I knew the instructor said to relax but how do I relax and get back to the boat when I couldn’t breathe, and my lungs felt like they were filling with salt water? And what was that instructor thinking when they said not to use your arms, just your feet? Seriously? How do you do that? My survival instincts kicked in…. against my better judgment.
This brings me to Psalm 69…”Save me O God! For the waters have come up to my neck…and the flood sweeps over me….my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God”. How many times have we felt like this? Like the flood waters keep rising and threaten to pull us down. The waves wash over us, and life becomes overwhelming. Maybe Lent has already gotten you feeling like this or maybe you felt like this before Lent even started and it has NOT gotten any easier. You feel like you are drowning, and all your survival instincts are kicking into gear. You are fighting to keep your head above water and catch your breath. Where are you God?
We kick and fight to gain some sense of control of our situation BUT as the second part of the verse says…” At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your mercy answer me. With your faithful help rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me. “. Did you catch that? “At an acceptable time” When is that? Maybe it’s when we stop kicking and relying on our instincts to survive? Maybe it’s when we relax and surrender ourselves and our situations over to Him because only He has what we need to keep us floating.
Back to my snorkeling story, I did make it back to the boat. It took me a few moments to catch my breath and clear my lungs (and my head). I sat on the edge of the boat and thought to myself….Do I jump back in again? OR Do I sit here and wait for my family to return? Do I sit on the edge, wallowing in the defeat of my ability to control the situation? OR Do I try it again BUT this time, really relax and surrender? Quit kicking and just float. Can I give up control and let myself be carried by the waves, knowing I was in safe waters?
I did jump in and I’m happy to say the 2nd time went a lot better! Not only did I climb in gently, not jumping, but I truly stopped fighting the waves and let them carry me. (I also grabbed a life jacket 😉) I was able to experience something with my family that I would not have been able to if I would have stayed on the boat, succumbed to the feelings of defeat in the situation.
Isn’t that true of life? How many times does life seem to drown us…when we attempt to control every aspect of our lives and the situation, relying on our instincts to fight whatever doesn’t go our way? Rather, shouldn’t we just surrender ourselves to Him? Let Him carry us along the waves of life, knowing He will not let us sink. His Words are our life jacket preventing us from drowning.
So, as we continue through these weeks of Lent, put on your life jacket, and stop fighting against the waves. He’s not going to let us sink if we choose to let ourselves float on the currents of His grace. He will carry us through …whatever struggles, turmoil, troubles, or rough seas we face.
Trusting in His Care,
Christine