I woke up with the theme song from Jaws going through my head, which I thought was kind of peculiar and a little disconcerting until Holy Spirit clarified the why of it…
When you choose to accept Jesus Christ as Lord of your life and as your personal Savior you are “choosing” to enter into a personal relationship with Him. Oh yes, did you know that you can actually HAVE a one on One relationship with the One who died on the cross for forgiveness of your sins? Seriously, it’s not like when you were a kid and might have had “an invisible friend” – and I didn’t really mean that to be a pun! 😉 Jesus is REALLY there, REALLY present. When you choose to make the awesome decision of making Him Lord and Savior by asking Him to come into your heart, you enter into the most important relationship you will EVER be in, and YOU get to determine how deep you are willing to go.
So I ask you, where are you at with your relationship with Him? Do you HAVE a relationship with Him? Or have you just “heard” of Jesus and what He did for you and are politely nodding your head (in a I’m just smiling-at-you-hoping-that-we-are-not-about-to-enter-into-a-religious-conversation kind of way? Standing at the shore of your life, perfectly content with watching at what you think is a “safe distance.” (It’s not… That’s deception…) Looking at it from a “that’s good for other people but not for me” pat-the-back-of-my-hand kind of way? Thinking that anyone who promotes having a “personal relationship with Jesus Christ” is delusional? (Are you SURE about that??) Safety from the seashore missing out on ALL that God REALLY intended you to have (and ALL that He died to GIVE you) is exactly where the “Jaws” of this life (satan) wants you to remain only to come to the end of your life and find out that God had SO much more for you. Because (as in John 3:16)
“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”
You were afraid of what was IN the water that you decided not to venture out, thinking that you would be safer on the shore.
Or maybe you have decided to be in a toe-dipper kind of relationship with Him to test the water… Talking with God one day of the week, but Monday-Saturday not giving Him any kind of attention unless something in life requires you to go running to Him when times are rough. But other than that – you are good. (How would you feel if you were in a relationship with someone and you only communicated with them when you needed something? But didn’t spend anytime cultivating that relationship at any other time?) Now God’s grace, His love and His mercy is so much more forgiving of us than we are to others – but is this REALLY all God wants you to have of Him?
Or maybe you go waist deep… You can still see the shore from where you are at, you are uneasy at going any deeper out. You feel safer with that feet-on-the-sandy-bottom-of-the-shore-feel-like-I’m-in-control kind of relationship. Trusting that you “got this” not fully dependent on “someone” else kind of relationship.
Where are you at and WHY? What does God have to do to make you want to go deeper with Him? To see that He has SOOOOOOOO much MORE for you. So much He wants to introduce you to, so much He wants to show you, so much He has in store for you – if only you’ll go deeper. He’ll even walk you out and talk you through it.
Think about this, have you ever brought a child out to the ocean? You kick your shoes off and feel the warmth of the warm sand on your feet. Wiggle out of your clothes until your standing in your bathing suit, taking the hand of the child who is with you, or holding a small child in your arms, you venture closer to the shore, the sand has now changed from the consistency of dry, thick hard-to-walk-in, feet-buried-with-every step sand to wet, cool, firm sand. Maybe the child in your arms is watching you to gauge how they should be feeling about this experience. Maybe their arms are around your neck and their legs are locked tightly around your middle. You keep stepping out, talking with them all the way, gasping at the sudden coldness of the salt water as it hits your feet, waves lapping on the shore making you have to concentrate on keeping your balance. The child in your arms scoots up your body and gasps too, looking at you for reassurance, as the cold water sprays their small form. But you make it fun for them, talking soothing words of encouragement. You are setting the tone for what this experience will be for them, what are you making it? One of fear and anxiety and uncertainty? Or one of excitement and fun?
As you venture deeper out with them in your arms, they feed off your excitement. They trust YOU. They have confidence that YOU won’t let anything happen to them. Your excitement has become contagious and maybe you even show them how to jump when a wave comes and they are squealing with delight. Or maybe you teach them how to float on their back with your arms protectively guiding them, right underneath. They know you’ve got them. (Do YOU know that YOUR Father has got you??? Even during those times when you can’t feel His arms underneath you????).
God loves you SO much that He allows YOU to determine how deep you are willing to go with Him.
He doesn’t “demand it” He encourages you to:
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8).
The choice of how deep you are willing to go with Him rests on YOU. But if you decide to dive below the surface with Him – oh the beauty He will show you! Breathtakingly beautiful revelations that He will reveal to you as you dive deeper into a relationship with Him that will simply take your breath away!
Treasures that go BEYOND any sunken worldly treasures that you can find. Revelation after revelation of ALL that God originally intended you to experience by having a deeper relationship with Him. Beauty IN life that only the GIVER and Creator of Life can show you, Himself. Revelations about who YOU are and what He has intended since He created you FOR you.
Let me tell you, you CANNOT out give the Giver. This IS the same God who in Genesis 1:26-28:
“And God said, let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth on the earth.
So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.”
Does THIS sound like someone YOU would not want to “go deeper” with? He not ONLY gave them “flowers” and put them in the very first exquisite “garden” (Eden) but He gave them DOMINION over all that He indicated above! This is NOT a God that would “hold back” from you. So – WHY are YOU holding back from HIM? God desires you to go deeper and when you choose to do so, He blesses you so MUCH more so than you can imagine. You only have to keep walking out. Keep trusting… Keep believing… God has GOT you, even through the times when you can’t feel His presence. He said in Hebrews 13:5:
“I will NEVER leave NOR forsake you.” (Emphasis is mine)
You just have to make the choice to go beyond the surface. He’s with you EVERY step of the way and when you get to a point where you feel you are over your head, He’ll carry you. He’ll be there – He always has been there, He’s just waiting on YOU.
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