Thursday, July 2, 2009

The River of Life

Read: Proverbs 3

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

I have recently been planned a huge family reunion in June 2010 in honor of what have been my mother and dad’s 95th and 96th birthdays respectively. One of the activities we hope to participant in as a family is whitewater rafting. Thinking of the possibility, I drifted back in time.

I love to shoot rapids. I remember shooting rapids in a sixteen-foot aluminum canoe as a teenager. Of course, during that time, the rapids were probably category I or II in strength, but they seemed like Category IV from our perspective. As a teenager, it was a thrill, a heart-pumping, adrenaline-flowing moment as my brother and I came toward the first swell, water splashing in our faces, veering around one large boulder, and another. We paddled like crazy listening to each other above the “roar” of the Delaware River around Washington’s Crossing. At the end of each run, we took a deep breath and relaxed in the calm of a smooth flowing pool below, baling out the water we took on in the previous rapids. Oh what a wonderful remembrance! In fact, as I type this, my heart feels the exhilaration again.

As amateurs, we discovered some of the keys to the successful conquer of those rapids. They are not limited to directional control or float with or ahead of the current, but also, looking ahead and not to the side or behind. Furthermore, in the process, there was the reciprocal trust of my brother and me as we traveled along the river.

It is the same as life. The river of life is like shooting the rapids of a twisting, descending riverbed. The river of life has a guide who wants us to listen to his instructions and plan. The Guide, calls out to us over the roar of the rapids, the noise of the riffles, and the peacefulness of the calm pools, calling us to trust him with our whole heart. Thus, Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us to trust the Guide in our run in the river of life.


Prayer: O Lord Jesus, may we remember to trust you with our heart as we travel within the river of life with you as Guide. May we be an instrument of your guidance to others who travel along their rivers of life. Amen.