JUMP IN!

A devotional about looking at the topic of trust and whether one can “Jump In” trusting God. 

THOUGHT:  Recently, I was feeling homesick for my home in Florida, and came across this beautiful picture.  I remember as a child that when encountering a dock like this, I would run as fast as I could down the dock and jump into the water without any thought of danger or discomfort.  Yet now, facing my “later” years, I find this picture, instead of beckoning me to run without abandonment, is almost symbolic of trust issues.

What if the water is too cold?  What if I am trespassing?  What if the water is too shallow?  What if there are jellyfish there?  On and on and on. 

Where is that little child who had no questions looming? Where is the child who fell into the water with frivolity and anticipation?  What happened to her? 

LIFE.  Life happened.  As we move forward in our lives, it seems as if our experiences tend to squelch that childlike abandonment and it is replaced with “What could go wrong?”  The complete trust and bravery of childhood is replaced by the infamous “wisdom” of adulthood.  We know more, so we trust less.  We’ve learned the possibilities and therefore we’ve learned to be fearful. 

Oh, how I long for the days when trust was not even an issue.  There is something to be said for the quip – “Youth is wasted on the young”.  Now, certainly God gives small children their parents and other mature adults to protect them from their full and complete trust.  Someone needs to be concerned about their welfare and guiding them towards safe decisions. Yet, wouldn’t it be GREAT to be an adult and trust a little bit more, to step out and try new things, and to allow ourselves a little more courage?  

We can accomplish all those things if only we cling to the scripture above.  Let’s look at the exact words.  Trust in the Lord with ALL your heart.  Not part of it with lots of questions.  ALL.  Lean not unto thine OWN understanding.  Don’t create questions that will foster distrust.  In all thy ways ACKNOWLEDGE Him.  When we create our own questions and fears, we don’t allow ourselves to “know” that we are not in charge but that He, God, is in control of our world.  And he shall DIRECT thy paths.  If we stop, breathe, and realize that God is in charge, then, and only then, can we be guided down the right paths and trust, fully trust. 

If I may be so bold as to reflect on four of Gods’ Words………. ALL, OWN, ACKNOWLEDGE, DIRECT.  These words leave no room for questions or fear or distrust.  “All” means to trust fully.  “Own” means to turn away from God.  “Acknowledge” though means to turn back to God and realize our own fears and shortcomings. Finally, “Direct” also means to let go of our own choices and allow the intervention of God to point us in the righteous path.  If we utilized these words in a different way, could it be similar to the following phrase?

“ALL of our lives, we try to OWN everything, and we live in fear.  Instead, we should DIRECT our fears to God and ACKNOWLEDGE the complete protection available and jump without abandonment into His Arms.”

PRAYER:  Help me God to JUMP towards you, abandoning my fears, leaving behind my selfish knowledge.  Please open Your Arms to me, allowing the giddiness and laughter of childhood to envelope me.  Don’t allow me to stay on the dock.  Let me splash and swim and fall completely into the water.  AMEN.