Take the Leap

Every year at our church, just before school lets out for summer, a family hosts all the kids in Sunday school at their house for a lake party. They break out all the water toys they have, load on the life vests, ask everyone to bring snacks to share, and then let everyone have hours of fun in the water.

One of the highlights for many of the kids is jumping off the rope swing that hangs from a tree near their neighbor’s dock. You climb high up on this dock, grab the rope with a hook, and jump off, letting go of the rope just in time to land out in the water, deep enough to not get hurt.

That’s the goal, anyway.

So, wanting to be the cool mom, one year I let my “friends” and my kids talk me into giving it a try.

I’ve never been more terrified in my life.

It didn’t matter that I had watched others take that plunge many, many times; when it came to talking myself into stepping off of that incredibly high dock holding onto that incredibly thin rope and dropping into that incredibly deep water, I. Was. Terrified.

I let 6-year-olds go in front of me.

Here’s the thing: Had I been jumping off high docks my whole life, I wouldn’t have even given it a second thought. I would have taken that rope and jumped gleefully, trusting that I would land in that water and not suffer any consequences. But I have lived a safe, uneventful–some might call it a boring–life. Extreme sports are not my thing.

Faith is like that. If I live a safe life, my need for great faith seems to be very small. Taking that leap when I need to see God do extreme things is very, very scary. But if I trust Him daily for all the huge things that He is capable of doing, faith–stepping off that dock–is just like walking on solid ground.

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6.)

Thankful today for:
339. An afternoon at the lake
340. A faithful God
341. Singing
342. Faithful old men
343. Talented people
344. Technology