Snorkeling or Scuba Diving?

"Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He disappeared from their sight.  They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" ~Luke 24:31-32

Last night at Joppa, Jeff asked a really great question.  Is your faith like snorkeling or scuba diving?

Well?  What is your answer to that question?

Personally, for a long time my faith was very much like snorkeling.  I stayed pretty shallow and at the surface.  I snorkeled with part of myself in the world and part of myself in Christ, but never really submerged all the way.  I was afraid.  Afraid of what God would ask of me if I gave everything over to Him. Afraid of what I would have to give up by giving in.  Afraid that once I did go completely under, that my friends and family would stand on the shore and laugh at my lame efforts.

Fear is strong if you let it be.

But fear didn't get the best of me.

I took a leap of faith, walked out on the water, spread my arms wide and fell backwards into the awaiting embrace of my Lord.  I dove in, head first, to see the splendor and beauty that lay below the surface.  I found that taking that leap, diving into the deep was the best thing I could have done.

You know what I found when I got there?  So much more than I could have ever dreamed in my entire life.  I found freedom to serve Him.  I found love I didn't think I had in me to give to others.  I found purpose for a life that didn't feel like there was.  I found a God of love, pulling me deeper.  He brought me to a place of brokenness that was necessary to walk through in order to help those who maybe had gone through some of the same things I did.  That place of brokenness also brought me to the revelation that I needed to trust in His strength and His power and His plan because I knew I couldn't do it on my own.

And through that the unimaginable happened.  I walked with broken and hurting children through their own personal hell, and I believe with my whole being that God is going to deliver them all of their circumstances and that some mighty leaders will be raised up through the ashes.  He is bringing about beauty through ashes.

This brings me to the verse above.  Jeff didn't get to that part of Luke 24. I read ahead and felt a connection to it.  It is the story of the two men on the road to Emmaus and their encounter with the risen Christ.  However, they didn't know they had been walking with the Lord until the end of the chapter.  This is where my heart skipped a beat.

Their eyes were opened to who He was, and their hearts burned as He opened the Scripture to them. 

How often does this happen to us?  I know that sometimes my own personal Bible studies and devotions can get a bit stalled.  Not because of God.  Because of me.  I realize that sometimes I am doing a devotion or scanning the Bible for my own selfish gain, completely missing out on what God is trying to tell me.  I walk the road to Emmaus with blinders on and my heart closed off.   I swim out of the deep end and start snorkeling again.  As I am walking, or snorkeling, a presence is felt and words of life begin to spill forth.  My heart begins to burn.  My legs begin to kick harder as I begin to submerge once again to deeper waters, deeper faith.

Sometimes we all need that road to Emmaus moment to wake us up to the wonderful power of His Word, His countenance.  Sometimes we need to be pulled, or yanked into His Almighty presence as a reminder of who we serve and how much He loves.

And boys and girls, how He loves.

It's ok to test the waters.  Put a foot in, grab the snorkel, stay in the shallow end of the pool.  My only question to you then is this.  How are you expecting to grow if you only stay in the wading pool?  Look towards the deep at Christ who is beckoning you forward into a closer walk, a deeper relationship completely submerged in His Word, His love and His salvation.  Trust that He knows what He is doing and don't be afraid to go there with Him.  His plan far exceeds anything you or I could think up.  Trust Him.  And when your faith gets stale, be on the lookout.  Emmaus isn't too far off and I guarantee He is with you through the entire trip.  Just keep walking.  Keep diving.  Keep seeking.  Keep searching.  Let your heart burn as His Scripture takes hold of you.  Don't let it go.

I guarantee it is worth it.