The Winds and the Waves...and the Water

I went to the Beach!

Now, there's an opening line that can make anyone happy.

I've been on vacation for the past week, hence the reason that I haven't written anything awe inspiring for all of my super fans, lately. I know there are so many out there. (*wink)

My family had the privilege of getting to go the beach in Galveston, to the Gulf of Mexico and enjoy the sun, waves, sand, seagulls, and the cool breeze that comes off of the ocean that is like no other.

What a beautiful sight to see first hand! What a privilege to walk the beach with my daughters, to be able to swim in the great Gulf. I'm thankful for that time to spend away and those memories that we built together.

One of the greatest take aways from this vacation though was just how awe inspiring the beauty of the nature around me was. It reminded me of God's thought and care in His creation. It all goes back to the beginning when he created the heavens and the earth. He took this dark, formless void and formed it into the creation that we see before us today. He made the waters swarm with fish and other sea life and the skies above were filled with birds. God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good.

The sheer power of the waves reminded me of God's power. I'm reminded of the sovereignty that Jesus had over the winds and the waves as a furious storm came upon the waters where his disciples were in a boat as we read in Matthew 8:24-27. They were afraid and cried out to Jesus to save them. I too am in my boat as the winds and waves of this life sway me and rock my boat that makes me doubt and fear, but then I hear Jesus gently whisper, "why are you afraid?" As Jesus calms the storm then, he calms my anxieties, worries, and fears now and I too can't help but exclaim, "What kind of man is this? That even the winds and the waves obey him!" Just as the men in the boat said of this man, Jesus. I realize that he is not a mere man, but the son of God, the Savior of the world and not only can he calm the winds and waves, but he rose from the dead and has the power to do the same for me. So I stand in awe and say, "What kind of Savior is this?"

While in the water, watching a huge wave come my way, I was in awe of the sheer force behind it to knock me over and carry me at least a foot back toward the shore and my thoughts would turn toward this man Jesus, this son of God who created these waves, who mastered these waves and can't help but be truly inspired and amazed by such a wonderful, sovereign God.

Water has such significance in the Bible. From the beginning when God's Spirit hovered over the surface of the waters (Genesis 1:2), and when Jesus, the Word, was with God as everything was created through and for him. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. (John 1:2-4), to the great flood that destroyed a world full of sin, in which 8 souls were saved through water which is a picture of baptism, which now saves us as a response to God from a clean conscience (1 Peter 3:19-21), to the waters that Moses parted through God's mighty arm (Exodus 14:21-22), to waves that Jesus had controlled by his words and the waters that Jesus feet walked upon, to his baptism in water in which the spirit of God descended on him like a dove and a voice said from heaven, "This is my son, whom I love, with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17), to the water and spirit that enables us to enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5), to the baptism in which we are buried with Christ and raised to a new life with Him (Romans 6:4; Ephesians 4:5).

I'm grateful for vacations, for sandy beaches, for salt water, for waves, for birds and animals that I see at the beach, for bodies of water that stretch further than my eye can see. I'm grateful for rest and relaxation, for fun in the sun, for all that summer vacations bring, but mostly I'm grateful for a Savior that creates, controls and captivates. I'm grateful for a Savior that saves my soul.

If I may change up the words of those men on the boat who were inspired by Jesus so I may express my own awe, I would say, "What a God this is!"

"You are Lord, you are King

You are the master of everything.

What a God you are!"

(What a God you are! by Nancy Harmon)