The Beach

Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
By day the Lord directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life. 
- Psalm 42:7-8 NIV

About a decade or so ago (hard to believe it’s been that long), my family and I took a long awaited and much needed vacation to Pensacola Beach. It was a family Christmas gift from my in-laws to our entire family: My five, my sister in-law, and my mother and father in-law. 

It was an absolutely beautiful and fantastic week. Most days there was nary a cloud in the sky. And the beauty of Pensacola Beach is not only the sun and the surf, but also the Sound is just across the road from the beach. It’s the constant waves and sand of the beach on one side… and the calm serenity of the Sound on the other.

And as great and fun-filled as the days were in the sun and surf, one night stands out more than anything else.

That particular night I had the opportunity to walk the beach with my two older girls and their friend visiting from France. At one point, we sat and watched the moonlight dance on the waves and in the darkness and saw the stars go on forever in the deepness of the night sky. And while the waves continually rose and fell at our feet, the ocean breeze blew through our hair.

And while we sat there, we began to sing praise songs of God’s great love… and my mind and heart were overwhelmed by how close I felt to God in that moment, in that place. All that I saw reminding me of God and His great love:

The Scene: 
A reminder of that creation moment. A reminder of God’s Great Creativity.

The Waves: 
How Jesus forgives. How He carries our sin out to the ocean depths (over and over again). How He washes us clean. The waves a constant reminder of God’s love and grace splashing over us again and again.

The Ocean Breeze: 
As constant as the Holy Spirit blowing upon us. Sometimes lightly in our face. Sometimes stronger at our back… but constantly and consistently present.

The Stars in the Heavens: 
A reminder of God’s great vastness. How big He is. How He sees all and knows all and created all. How He takes care of the Big things and sees the Big Picture… like a painting on the night’s sky… or the creative colors in the earlier sunset.

The Sand on the Beach: 
Not only is He in the greatness and the vastness, but also in the detail of the smallest grain of sand (and in the even smaller). If He created the smallest particle, He knows and cares about the smallest details of our life.

As I sat on that beach… that ocean shore… His peace washed over me, like the waters washing over my feet.

That night a constant and consistent reminder of His great love.

Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem