God’s got your back – And your boat

I was blessed to get to go on vacation with my family recently. And no, that’s not “blessed” Christianese speak for “dragged along helplessly.” No, I really was blessed. We went to Hawaii and we had a wonderful time. We swam in the ocean, played games, snorkeled, shopped, hiked, swam with sharks (some did), and more! It was fantastic.

One of the best parts of the trip, however, was getting to hang out with my nieces and nephews – one in particular is two years old, which officially makes her a little ball of cuteness. Elle is a happy, smiley girl who’s bounce in her step would float her away if the law of gravity didn’t exist. Bottom line, she is adorable. Buuuut as every rose must have its thorn, every baby must have their obsessive toy. Or in this case, her boat. That’s right. My niece’s toy of choice was a pink, inflatable, Dora The Explorer floaty boat, complete with inflatable steering wheel, and it is not to be messed with. Made for the pool/ocean, with holes for your legs to go through, this inflatable boat is the cat’s meow, for a 2 year old at least. (Ok, it’s pretty cool). Elle would step into her boat and walk, gripping the steering wheel, to the beach. As you can imagine, this was a rather slow walk, so eventually I had to pick her up – in boat – and lead the way. (Note: Do NOT try to take a boat away from a tiny baby. They may be small, but their grip on their toy of choice is deathlike.) Baby and her boat – who knew?

We got to the water and found a lagoon-like part of the beach with tiny waves, gentle enough for the kids to float on, but still fun enough for everyone to play in. We. Had. A. Blast. There were several of us there, each person with a child in some sort of floaty device next to them, all watching the kids and playing in the waves. We jumped. We floated. Good times were had by all. The younger kids didn’t understand why we hurried to jump as waves came, and the adults (at times) desperately wished for a floaty ring like the kids had, as they bobbled along the top of the waves. It was quite amusing.

At one point, however, someone called our attention to Elle. As I jumped in the waves to avoid a splash in the face, I turned to search for the tiny, Dora boat floating merely 10 feet away from me. I saw her, Elle. Sitting in her boat, steering wheel in hand, hat on her head.….ASLEEP. Could you believe it? Here we are jumping, kicking, splashing, and other ways of burning calories – and energy – to protect ourselves in the Pacific Ocean, and here Elle is – sleeping. I thought to myself, if I had a nice floaty boat (Um… “We’re gonna need a bigger boat,” anyone?), and was in nice warm water, with a giant standing next to me holding me steady as the waves rocked up and down, I could fall asleep too! Knowing I am safe, watched over, and not going to drift off anywhere, I could fall asleep too!

This picture hit me with so many different thoughts, I don’t even know where to begin.

We could talk about the time where Jesus was in a boat during a vicious storm. The disciples went crazy and were afraid, but Jesus slept. He knew his Father was watching over him, taking care of him, and that he would make it out to the other side.
We could talk about peace and rest. How you need it. How to get it. How it’s Biblical. And how to not hurry and scurry around trying to do things in your own strength.

But even more this speaks to me about child-like faith. Elle was just so happy, so content, and so trusting. She knew she was safe, because someone had their hand on her boat. She was surrounded by people who love her and care for her. And even when waves were high and others jumped, she floated right along – safe, sound, and secure. She trusted those over her to watch out for her. And isn’t that just what God wants of us? How many times to I wear myself trying to jump around a keep myself secure and protected. I’ll tell you, it’s much more fun to float along the waves when God has your back than it is to try and jump them alone. Hebrews speaks of how to please God – by trusting him.

So I’m thinking – maybe it’s good to just sit back today and look at my life. Do I trust God? Am I trusting Him with my life, am I in the boat? Or am I trying to do things on my own, working in my own strength and exhausted while trying to “enjoy” life by doing things my way? It may not be pink and have Dora on it, but I am deciding that I want to be in the boat – from this point forward. God, I trust you.