Drifting out to Sea

I remember a cute story one time about a man that had drifted too far from the shore and his swimming skills were not great. Realizing how far out he was and that his energy had drained and fear had escalated to a peak that he understood his life was in peril. He began to pray to God to please give him the strength to swim back to shore. As things reached it's highest point of danger the man begin to bargain. He told God that if you save me I will attend church more often, I will tithe more, I will volunteer my time, I will be a better husband and father. As he got closer and closer to shore he finally was able to feel the sand under his feet and he knew he was safe. Instead of thanking God for his help and honoring his word, he looked up to the Heaven's and said "I got it from here God I don't need you anymore".

That may sound somewhat cheesy and humorous but there is an element of truth to that story in all of our lives. We need what we need when we need it, or should I say that we want what we want when we want it. Beings that we all live in an instant information society and an instant gratification society, we want what we want NOW. There is no need to pray for anything unless we feel as though it is out of our immediate reach. After we spend time in prayer and we get to the point to where we can get what we think we need or want we stop the prayer time and move forward on our own. You may not believe that you do that but trust me you do, we all do. God is an after thought today and he is only called on when we feel that we need help getting what we want. 

All of this is self centered, a bit cynical, and even a bit more egotistical, but it is the reality in which we live. I think at our core we all desire to be good and to help others but with the "now world" in which we live it makes it difficult to put the needs of others above our own. Getting caught up in the instant whirlwind usually sucks us into a life that is counter to the one we were born to live. 

We all have an element of God in us that awakened can do more to guide our lives than anything you may think you need RIGHT NOW. You have heard the old cliche "God plus you is enough", there is truth in that statement. I recall sharing a story recently about the two sides of each of us that we fight with daily. We have the good and the evil that lives in our bodies. That one that becomes prevalent is the one that we feed. If we spend our time living a life outside of love then we will see the evil side of us rise to the surface. That side of us promotes division, bitterness, jealousy, hate, apathy, etc. When that side of us is what others see it creates an acceptance that the behavior we display is okay. When that happens others gladly join the hate bandwagon and next thing you know we have a narcissistic society that is so obsessed with "ME" that love has drifted so far from shore with little hope of making it back. 

On the flip side though, when we feed the good that is in us it too rises to the surface and creates a warmth that unites people in such a way that love is evident. Good is where God resides, why, because that is what we were created to be. GOOD. When we live a life seeking our purpose, our calling, our passion, we will always be doing it with love. Faith and spirituality promote love and peace. Faith and spirituality promote well being, empathy, acceptance and bridge building. Faith and spirituality are from God and of God. I always wish that Christian Churches promoted unity but the truth is they simply do not. Too many of our churches try hard to convince you that their way is the right way and the others are close but they have it wrong. They are fighting for membership more than they are lost souls. Just think if all churches promoted peace, love, acceptance, and forgiveness REGARDLESS of the sign on the building, what a wonderful world it would be. That is what would happen if we fed the GOOD inside us. 

Well I have rambled many directions this morning but the message is clear. We all need God in our lives, whether we are drifting aimlessly out to sea or we have our feet planted firmly on land. With God our lives have meaning without God our lives go in circles. You do not have to go to church to have God in your life but it does help. If you live a life promoting peace and love then God is evident in you. Remember also as we conclude here that we never ever judge others even when we do not agree with them. We cannot see life through anyone else's eyes and for us to pass judgement means we elevate ourselves above them. Let's go out today and with God in our hearts lend a hand to others. It isn't what we have that makes life great it is what we do. If you find yourself drifting out to sea join hands with God and hold on tight. Once you get to shore be thankful and then be the life preserver for others that God saved you to be.

peace and love

Dale