High Tide Prayer

Prayer has been a focus for me lately. Perhaps that sounds odd to you coming from a pastor, you might think we pray all the time…for hours on end. And though we are all called to “pray continuously”, the reality is that sometimes my prayer life is more God-focused than it is at other times. Of course, I pray every day, but the act of truly being in communion with God during this focused and uninterrupted private time has been a priority for me. I realize now how far I was from this ten years ago, and perhaps ten years from today I will look back and realize how far I am from it now. That is part of the beauty of growth in our Christian life, and the never-ending aspect of relationship with our God.

                As I am writing this I am sitting on the balcony of our condo at the beach. This is my family’s annual vacation week to Oak Island, NC. The beach is one of my favorite places. People keep telling me that if I lived here I would miss the mountains and want to be back in East Tennessee…maybe, but I’d be willing to give it a shot. The beach is also one of my favorite places to pray, well, actually, in the ocean is one of my favorite places to pray. Because sometimes praying in the ocean is hard.

                                I like praying in the ocean because of the sound. I am an easily distracted person. It took me 15 minutes to write the paragraph above because I was watching a seagull. My wife likes to say that she doesn’t have ducks and they’re not in a row because she has squirrels and they’re at a rave….that’s another whole story though, and I think I once again have been distracted.

Back to the ocean. The sound of the ocean helps drown out the other sounds that constantly seek my attention. I need this when I pray. I need the other sounds quieted so that I can focus on and be with my Lord. The ocean is my prayer closet.

                There is also a rhythmic sound to the ocean. It is soothing to me, and there is a beautiful repetition that helps me focus on the eternal and unchanging qualities of the One I am spending this time with. This is soothing to me. There needs to be a rhythm to our lives, not a monotony, but a sacred rhythm of who we are and how this life all makes sense. There will be plenty of things that happen that seek to upset this rhythm; death, unemployment, natural disaster, terrorism, illness, disease, injustice. So a sacred rhythm to life is important. If you don’t have this rhythm yet, talk to someone you know who does. It will make all the difference when interruptions come. The rhythm of the sound of the ocean reminds me that there is a rhythm to my life, even if it may seem chaotic at the time.

                I also like praying in the ocean because of the water. This may seem rather obvious, but the water splashing over me is a prayerful reminder of God’s grace. As I begin my prayers I first ask God to forgive my sins, both known and unknown. I think this is important for me to take care of the elephant in my spiritual room so that my Lord and I can get on to our time together. But the importance of this is paramount to me. Sin is what stands in between me and God, and I know that when I ask for forgiveness that He is faithful and just to forgive me because Jesus has already paid the price for my sins, both those I have committed in the past, and those that will be committed in my future, both those sins of commission and those sins of omission, all my sins of thought, word, and deed. So during this time I let the waves just wash over me. Cleansing me. And I praise God for this.

                But sometimes praying in the ocean is hard. Yesterday I went down to the beach about 5:00. It was high tide, so there were not many people on the beach, since there wasn’t much beach to sit on at that time of the day. The ocean waves had made their way as close as they were allowed, sneaking up to the edge of the dunes for the second time of the day. They weren’t going to come any further than that today, their journey  onto the beach had been limited by their Maker. And so I waded into the waters, and there began my prayer. During high tide the waves are a little rougher, they crash a little harder, they move you around a little more, and it’s harder to keep your balance and stay in the same spot. This is a good reminder for me of all the things distracting me, and my need to stay focused and stand firm in my prayer, in my faith, and in my life.

                Today be strong in your prayer. Hold on. Stand firm. And if you are getting knocked around a little by the rough waves today, just remember that high tides don’t last forever.