#899 – Oceans

I spent yesterday at the beach with our youth group. Most of our students head back to school next week so we finished off our summer with a day along the Pacific Ocean. I love the beach. I enjoy burying my feet in the sand, absorbing the warmth of the sun and feeling cool ocean breezes on my face.

I love the beach but I’m not too fond of the ocean. I’m not a big fan of waves, I don’t like salt water and a stingray stung me once and infected my foot. Even though I don’t love the ocean, God was able to speak to me through the ocean.

As the sun set and our day drew to a close, our group gathered around a bonfire to sing some worship songs. We sang the Hillsong United song “Oceans,” which was rather fitting since we could hear the ocean in the background.

We have been singing “Oceans” at our church for over a year. It’s a great worship song that speaks to God’s provision in our lives. When we’re facing waves and storms, we can trust that God will keep us from drowning. I’ve always been encouraged by that aspect of the song but, as we were singing it last night, I saw something entirely new in its lyrics.

Here is the bridge of the song:

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever you would call me

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior

In the midst of a song about God’s provisions in the storm, we find a prayer for the Holy Spirit to potentially lead us into a storm.

Asking the Spirit to lead us into a situation that will grow and stretch our faith can be dangerous. If we pray that prayer then God might actually listen to us. He might actually lead us out upon the stormy waters, not to see us drown but to see us grow and change.

I’d be much happier staying in the boat and seeing what growth opportunities I could find in its safety. However, as the Bible attests to time and time again, the storms and trials produce the greatest amount of growth and maturity in our lives. Perhaps if we’ve felt stagnant in our spiritual growth and maturity it’s time to make the bridge from “Oceans” the prayer of our heart.

Have you ever asked God to lead you to situations that would stretch and grow your faith? What was that like?