word-shaped life-songs

A Crashing Wave

Yesterday, all the staff at Fellowship received an email during the workday that our community ministry was giving away a bunch of books. It was a “first come, first served” type of thing. They must have cleaned out a closet or some office spaces or something. Anyway, I dropped by a grabbed a “few.” 

As I walked back to my office holding a small stack of books, the cover of the book on top of the stack caught my eye and made me think. It was a picture of water rushing over a rock in a river or small waterfall or something. Initially though, I thought it looked like a wave crashing on a bedrock shore. I don’t know if the book is any good or not, but the title “When Life and Beliefs Collide” and that image of a crashing wave got me thinking.

Life is like water, isn’t it? It’s even more like a ocean wave, I think. Life is fluid, ever-changing, tumultuous at times and peaceful at times, and it often feels like it is rushing forward like an uncontrollable wave.

The truth of God and trust in Him is like a bedrock shore—strong, unmovable, solid, stable.

When the two collide, it is a violent affair. We say it is a “crashing” wave for a reason. The uncontrollable, rushing wave is having to reckon with the unmovable, solid bedrock shore. At the same time, it is beautiful to behold, isn’t it? It is also one of the most beautiful sounds in existence. Just think of how many times the sound of ocean waves has been reproduced again and again for the enjoyment of our ears and, for many, the restfulness of our sleep. The wave doesn’t overtake the bedrock shore. It eventually subsides. Interestingly though, the residue of the salt water remains on the soaked rock.

So it is in the life of a believer. I pray that the truth of God, His Story, would glisten with the residue of my life—my particular experiences, my story—like soaked bedrock glistens in the sun with the last crashing wave’s salty water. And, I pray that I would be able to behold, listen to, enjoy, and steadily learn from the beauty of the collision—as violent as it may be—of life and truth-trusting faith.