I wanted to see the ocean again, even though the winds are strong and the beach population amounts to four other people, or at times, two ... not including the lifeguard. On this trip there are no flip-flops, swimsuits, or sun-bathers to be seen…very few are walking barefoot along the beach. In fact, the sand shows no footprints…only rhythmic patterns of ripples – a precise design caused by the strong winds. If you look closely you can see tiny sparkles of sand being scooted along by the wind, even now. A glance over the beach reveals a low cloud of sand moving easily with the wind.
I placed my chair (the only chair on the beach) in the sand and walked a short distance. Walking in one direction wasn’t so bad, but the return walk (back to the only chair on the beach) was harder because I was facing the wind. I thought it might be a good thing to just sit in the one lone chair available (which is mine) and just watch the ocean do it’s thing. So, here I sit, with beach towel around my shoulders to guard against the more than healthy breeze, ready to listen to the roar of the giant body of water and observe the continuous crashing of the waves.
I remember commenting after my last beach visit, "I don’t know why I take pictures of each visit, it doesn’t change ... it’s always the same." Well, today I retract that statement. I was wrong. The moment I entered the beach area – that split second of catching my first glimpse of the gigantic ocean – I knew instantly that I was wrong. I could tell that something was different this time. At first glance, the waters seemed elevated, as though to announce its turbulence. Like a mood. The waves crash as before, yet with increased energy. The waves are responding to the mood! Obviously, the high winds are dictating the mood of the ocean today. It has become an ocean with an attitude!
Even though the winds clearly change the mood of the mighty waters and rearrange the sands of the shore…this fact remains true: The sands were placed as a boundary by the Almighty Hand of God…
Jeremiah 5:22 (N I V) Should you not fear me?" declares the LORD. "Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it.
Feeling safe because of the perpetual decree of the Lord, I will sit in my lone chair for a bit and watch those roaring waves. When you are alone you can sit patiently, if you so desire, and savor the moment. Take as long as you like. There's no rush. It's your day.
I realize today is not conducive for beach lingering…not a day for a casual stroll along the water’s edge, feeling the warm sand between your toes…yet the day has its own beauty. It’s a day for the great waters to display potency, to flex its muscles, so to speak. It’s a day to experience a different mood – an ocean's mood of intensified vigor.
Will I ever learn all the lessons of life? Not likely – not in this lifetime, anyway. I will continue to learn, even from the ocean. Now, I can utter with certainty, “No, the ocean is not always the same." But Jesus is! The Word declares in Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever." That’s an unchangeable fact I can grasp in this life…once and for all.
Until I see Him….I’m still learning.
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