Paddling Down the River

T

I enjoy kayaking on the lakes and streams of Illinois.  Learning to kayak has been an interesting journey.  I began on some of the lakes in the area where the water was calm and smooth.  The first time I tried to go down a river (The Big Muddy) was quite a learning experience.  I set out on a wide, smooth stretch of the river and proceeded quickly downstream and around a couple of bends.  The first mile went so well that I mistakenly thought I knew what I was doing.  

After the second bend in the river I began to notice odd patterns on the surface of the water, but considered them to be of no significance.  I was more interested in the bluffs above me that I was seeing for the first time.  The next thing I knew, the current had quickened, the kayak shot forward and hung up on a submerged log.  It quickly turned sideways in the stream and water began to pour into the cockpit. I had to abandon ship!  

I pulled it over to the side of the stream, flipped it over and emptied it of water and put in again on the other side of the submerged log.  It all happened so fast that I was a little stunned.  This was not what I had planned.  The current had slowed down again and paddling was going smoothly.  I was beginning to relax and enjoy the journey once again.  As I went around another bend in the river I paddled through the inside of the bend.  Before I knew what was happening, I had run aground on some sand just below the surface of the water.  I needed to get out again, but at least I was not sinking.  I just needed to pull the boat off the sand bar.

When I stepped out of the kayak, I immediately began to sink.  The sand was so porous with water that there seemed to be no bottom.  Thank God that I had my personal flotation device on.  Fortunately, I was able to flatten my paddle out and that seemed to stop my sinking.  But I had gone down to my armpits.  I was scared.  For the first time, I realized I could get killed because of my ignorance about what I was trying to do.  After a few minutes of work I was able to move across the sand bar to a place where I found some solid footing.  I dragged myself out and took a short swim in the river to rinse all the sand off.  After carefully getting my kayak off the bar, I was ready to try again.

This time, a sadder but wiser novice began to paddle down the river.  I was no longer watching the scenery go by, I was trying to learn to read the river.  The odd patterns I had noticed and dismissed earlier were my guides.  Ripples could tell me of changes in the depth of the stream and the speed of the current.  Odd waves that appeared out of nowhere indicated slightly submerged rocks, trees and other dangers.  The inside of bends were smooth, but always shallow with sand, silt and mud.  I began to watch the sides of the banks for indications of fallen trees that were waiting to trap me as they lay waiting under the surface of the water.  

As the journey continued, I still made mistakes and learned things the hard way.  But the mistakes became fewer as I paddled along.  After that first voyage on the river was finished, I had to rest.  I also bought some books on paddling and how to read the river.  It is amazing how much different things are when you are better prepared and realize the danger around you.  Surprisingly, because I have more knowledge, am better prepared, have experience, and a healthy respect for the dangers I face; I actually enjoy getting out on the kayak more than when I first started. But it was essential that I learn to read the river, the meanings of the patterns on the surface of the water, the bends in the river, the width of the stream and countless other clues that told me where to paddle and what to avoid, so that I could finish my journey.

Jesus was asked to give a sign to prove Himself one day.  His response was instructive.  "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy for the sky is red and overcast.'  You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.  A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah (Matthew 16.2-4)"

The same is true for us today.  Many people are looking for God to put up a bright, high def sign that tells us that He is real and this is what we should do.  But the truth is that God has already given us everything that we need to see to believe in Him and follow the way He would have us to go.  

We seem to struggle with right and wrong.  When professional athletes cheat, we argue that it is okay (if it helps our team).  After years and years of lowering standards of content for sex and violence in publications, film and television, we are puzzled by the increases of violence and sexual assaults on women.  The list goes on and on.  Our culture has become biblically illiterate.  Even professing Christians no longer know their Bibles well.  But it is in the Word of God that we learn to read the River of Life.  There are signs of danger we can recognize.  There are safe havens we can move toward.  But the course we should follow only becomes clear to us when we study God's Word and learn to follow Christ.  When we follow Him on the course He has set for us is when we can truly begin to enjoy the life that He has given to us.  Happy paddling!