God and His boogie boarding lessons

Column Post by Aj Luck

Today I found myself standing in the middle of the ocean holding a boogie board in hand, facing mounds of waves coming right at me, and I was smiling. I was surrounded by excited, giggling kids holding their boogie boards too. I was clearly the oldest among them…by many years.

Before today I had never even held a boogie board.

My previous experiences with the ocean had been brief at best. I had barely endured it, let alone braved it. I was the silly woman screaming and jumping in the shallow end if I even thought something was swimming close to me. Now here I was embracing something that, deep down, terrified me.

There was a dad out in the water with his kids teaching them how to catch the waves at just the right time. I eavesdropped. I didn’t want to admit I was clueless.

The waves came, and I grabbed the board and tried. I failed many times. I swallowed gallons of sea water and scraped the skin off both of my knees. I repeatedly got back up and went back for more of this “American water torture”, and I loved every minute of it.

FINALLY I actually caught a wave. I was laughing at the top of my lungs and screaming, “Yeah, woo hoo!” the entire time.

I jumped up out of the water and started yelling, “I did it! I did it!” I didn’t care who was around me or what they thought. I was yelling out to my Creator in glee about something much greater than boogie boarding. I was embracing the moment.

As I started walking back towards another wave my heart was pierced with God whispering this gentle reminder:

For years I feared going into the ocean because of the unknowns within it. I feared more of what could hurt me than the joy that could be mine.

It is no different in our lives. There is insecurity in all of us. We hide behind our walls, nursing anxious hearts and biting our nails down to the quick. We ignore the dreams God has placed in our hearts, afraid to try. We fear failure, and if we are truly honest, sometimes we fear success. We are afraid of what the world will say WHEN we fall, when we fail. We will. We are human.

Broken marriage? Divorce? Abuse? Disease?Addictions? Depression? Anxiety?
The list is endless of what causes us to shatter bit by bit. Don’t allow yourself to be defined by your brokenness. Let God heal you completely.

Psalms 29:11 “The Lord gives strength to His people, The Lord blesses His people with peace.”

Will you allow God to wash over your hurts and fears with His freedom and grace and help you ride the wave of peace towards your God-given destiny today? It doesn’t have to be on a boogie board, but I highly recommend trying it!

. . . . . . . . . . .

P.S. We’d love to know your thoughts, so please be sure to comment below. Each of our commenters will be entered in a drawing for this month’s FREE book giveaway, Mothers & Daughters: Mending a Strained Relationship by author Teena Stewart. 

Aj Luck is an author, blogger, bookworm, wife, and mommy. She loves to write children’s books, spiritual thrillers and inspirational works. She has a dedicated blog geared toward encouraging and helping women who have suffered and/or are struggling with abuse. www.shatteredperspectives.com

In her spare time Aj can be found nursing cold Diet Cokes and searching for awesome bargains in nearby thrift stores. She resides in Florida with her hubby, son, two dogs and the biggest diva of a Siamese cat ever. You can email her at aj@shatteredperspectives.com

Read more encouraging stories from brave-hearted women here. Be sure to grab your free copy of inspirational quotes and writing prompts while you’re there. (Look over on the right hand side!)