Behold, God is great, and we know him not;
the number of his years is unsearchable.
For he draws up the drops of water;
they distill his mist in rain,
which the skies pour down
and drop on mankind abundantly.
Can anyone understand the spreading of the clouds,
the thunderings of his pavilion?
Behold, he scatters his lightning about him
and covers the roots of the sea.
Job 36:26-30
Rain – The water cycle’s most prominent stage is precipitation. It is also a metaphor, for a variety of God’s actions. Coming from above where we place God in our minds, showers of blessings. His sovereignty comes down as he reigns over all creation. The rain, blessings, or rule, falls on the just and the unjust. Don’t forget, that we also associate storms, lightning, and all forms of acts of God, with judgment. What are we to make of this water, that flows from heaven physically, literally, and symbolically? The cycles of water’s motion cause a variety of effects on the earth, watering our crops, eroding our land, and providing many themes for us to interpret and consider.
There are so many choices when it comes to thinking about water, think about streams for a moment. Like the flow of a river, our life in some ways, is very linear; we have an upstream and a downstream, before and after, we move from a source, high above, to an outlet far below, around obstacles, rocks, vegetation, logs and geography; the meaning is deep and shallow.
The vast expanse of oceans around the globe — about 71% of the earth’s surface add other water features and it’s nearly 80% of the earth’s surface is water. As a metaphor, it expresses how vast is His love. Flow – movement in response, in the way of truth and connection with everything around it. Swim – The physical practice of motion in the water, balancing on the surface of the water is a liminal experience, moving between heaven and earth, the sky and the water, in a precarious balance preventing sinking and drowning.
Decision — What a perfect subject for what I should be working on. Writing is just a series of decisions, over and over, attempting to make sense of every word. As we lay it on the page we ask, is this what I really mean to say? You are so good, Lord. Willing to patiently wait for us to make faith-filled decisions, based on the truth you have revealed to our hearts. I still don’t know if I should swim now or just keep cracking at the writing. Swimming feels like procrastinating. That is probably enough of a guilt trip to make me move on and get in the office and write, write, write. Decisions in this world are the most amazing things. Do we fall in line behind the traditions of this world or do we blaze a new trail? Do we go against the tide or move with the flow of the stream? How do we know, we must follow Jesus, asking what would Jesus do in my place? What does he want of me in this moment? Such a challenge in our lives.
To wade through the messy swamp of this world, this mess of misunderstandings. To find our way toward the ideals of God almighty. It seems so conservative, so fundamentalist, but does any believer in Jesus think we should go against his will for our lives? How do these paragraphs line up to be a coherent daily message? That’s the other decision that I need to find my way toward. Toward listening to the people in our community of faith and trust that they can inform the direction my writing should go in. Basically, I’m saying that decision happens in relationship with others.
Photo by Jon Flobrant on Unsplash