Doves On Distant Oaks

Struggling in the Waves

Growing up, my family vacationed on the New Jersey Shore. Not the nefarious Atlantic City or the raucous teen-mecca of Wildwood, but one of the small, quiet beach towns in between. In the process, I learned an important lesson about water safety. That being, watch out for riptides.

The thing about riptides is that not only will riptides pull a swimmer away from shore, but sideways as well. I distinctly remember one day in particular. I was in my preteen years and we had been warned that there were some strong riptides where we were swimming. The lifeguards had stuck two oars in the sand to limit the swimmers range so they could watch them better. My brother and I would swim out beyond the crashing waves in front of one oar and within minutes, the current had drug us sideways down beyond the other. We had to get out of the water, walk back up on the sand, and start all over.

The most frightening moment, however, came when I was by myself, jumping over the waves. Suddenly a big wave rolled in and moments later the riptide grabbed hold of my feet and pulled them out from under me. Instantly I was struggling in the water, trying to get my footing as wave after wave rolled over me. I could feel the pull of the undercurrent, which seemed stronger than my ability to overcome. Suddenly my father was beside me to anchor me and while I may have come up sputtering, at least I felt steady enough to stand on my own again.

As I was remembering that incident recently, it suddenly dawned on me that a riptide is exactly what sin does in our lives. All we want to do is go about enjoying our lives, splashing around in the waves, loving the Lord, when suddenly our feet are swept out from under us and we find ourselves struggling to get our feet of faith back under us. We feel ourselves being pulled further and further down into sin.

We all suffer through those times in our lives. We loose our balance, get smothered by a wave, get thrown for a loop—whatever euphemism you care to use for it. That's to be expected. Never once did Jesus say, nor ever imply, that if we followed Him our lives would be easy. In fact, he said just the opposite: "... for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matthew 5:45b).

Sin is always going to enter our lives because it's part of this fallen world. It's like the rain ... it just keeps coming. Certainly there will be breaks from inclement weather—the sun shines and all seems right between us and our Father. Those times, however, never last. We either fail to see sin coming, or see it, but fail to guard ourselves against it properly. Sometimes we even dive headlong into it even knowing we are doing wrong. Then we act surprised when the riptide threatens to pull us completely under.

We can take comfort, though, in one great truth. Nothing—no matter how deep we seem to be sinking—can separate us from Christ's love, if we believe in Him. No matter what we have done, what sin has befallen us, we are covered by the blood of Christ. No matter how much Satan accuses us, Christ Himself intercedes on our behalf. He is that solid ground beneath our feet that is always there, ready to give us firm footing, like my father was that day in the waves. All we have to do is stop flailing and reach out a hand.

Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? … Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.

– Romans 8:34-35, 37

Keywords: Sin

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