The Ocean
By Caroline Wintoniw

One night a few of us went outside and stood by the waters edge, and stared off into the distance as the waves crashed at our feet.  We stood there is awe of God’s amazing beauty, and came up with an analogy of how God is like the ocean.  It goes a little something like this:

As you stand looking out over the ocean, your mind is trying to get a grasp on how big it is, and the fact that you are at the oceans edge, and people in china are also touching the same water at the same time.  It is kind of like God, he is so big and powerful you can never fully wrap your mind around him, and the fact that he is with everyone at every moment.

You look out over the ocean, and you see its power and might, just like God, He is all-powerful.  The rip tide is so strong it could carry you out to sea; it is not something to take lightly.  God is not something a person should take lightly, in other words you do not want to get caught in Gods “rip tide”.

 As the waves are coming in towards your feet a sense of fear washes over you, you are afraid because of its power and might. You tense up, and want to run away so the wave will not come crashing in on you.   Sometimes God comes into our lives and we are afraid to trust him, the situation sometimes seems scary.  Yet by the time the wave makes it to your feet, it gently touches your toes, and then goes out again.  We don’t need to be afraid when God is calling us to do something, even if we want to run away, but if we just stay put and let God come he will just gently touch our lives, and it is never as bad as we thought it could be.

You can watch the waves for hours and begin to see certain patterns, and you can guess which waves are going to be the big ones that come crashing to your knees, or the little ones that just touch your toes.  But you never know for sure, the waves are always a mystery; you never really know how big or small the wave will be when it comes to the shore.  People try to predict what God will do, and when he will do it, but he will always remain a mystery, and you will never know for sure when he will come and make a big impact in your life, or just gently touch your life.

As you continue to stand on the sand and let the waves touch your toes, your feet slowly begin sinking deeper and deeper into the sand.  As we let God come and touch our lives, and as we follow God’s will, we too slowly sink deeper and deeper into his love.