A while back, in the summer of 2012 to be exact, I took my kids to the local water park. Now I will be the first to admit I am not the world’s best swimmer. Keep that in mind as I tell my story. My son (10 at the time) was in a tube, and my daughter (7) and I were sitting in another tube together. I noticed that it wasn’t all that comfortable for her, the way we were sitting, so I decided I would get out and let her sit in the tube with me holding on to the outside. The plan seemed wise but failed from the start. The moment I went to lean out, the tube flipped. She had arm floaties on but still I went to grab her closer to me. As I reached to grab her by the floatie, I pulled her floatie off.
I began to panic because now neither of us was close to a tube and in water I could not touch the bottom of. My thoughts went to getting her up out of the water as I knew she must be scared. But in all my fighting to get her above water, I began to need help myself. From under the water I could see my arms extending out putting her face above the water as I continued to gasp and cough and gulp. I heard the whistle and knew help was coming. Within 20 seconds I was being saved by a lifeguard. My first thought was embarrassment. I couldn’t believe that I was the one that had to be saved. But after the humiliation wore off that a teenager had to save me, I felt relief. I was relieved my daughter was alright and our lives were both saved. I was thankful also that God was watching out for us.
Now I don’t go around looking for ways to get into trouble so I can make illustrations from my follies, but as I was driving past that water park last night, the memory of this event played again in my mind. I remembered my gasping for air. Never before had I been in a position where I was so desperate for air. And then I heard this little voice in my spirit ask, “Are you that desperate for Me?” What? Of course I am. “Are you so desperate for Me that you need Me as much as you needed air that day?” Until I gave an honest answer, the question played over and over in my head.
It is from an honest heart that I share with you that I was raised in a Christian family, received the Holy Spirit, went to a Christian college, and did all the right religious things. But the one thing I find that I struggle with at times is a passion for God. I know that God loves me and has a great plan for my life, and I embrace that. However, God wants me to have a desire for Him just as I had desire to breathe that day. I was one track minded in that moment – get my daughter to safety and myself next. I could not have been here today without this focus and determination to hold on for the help of a lifeguard. But I cannot afford to live one more moment without a passion for God and His statutes either. My life means nothing without God in it.
The challenge I lay before you today I first lay before myself. Does my soul long after Him? Do I linger in His presence, crave Him, desire Him, want nothing more than to be with Him? Psalm 42:1-2 reads, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, Oh God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet God?” Am I as desperate for God as I was for breath? I can guarantee you that after not only my water park salvation, but also after having God ask me this question, my desire must change. What about you? Will you join me in making God your desire today? But let's go one step further and answer the question of how. We can vow change till we're blue in the face, but what will we do to make the desire to change a reality? God is reaching out, like the lifeguard, and He has brought salvation to us. What will we do?
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