Treading Water
I have never been particularly athletic. This was evident during my childhood of summer swimming lessons. Even as a kid, I knew that my technique was lacking, but I could demonstrate the necessary skills to get from point A to point B using each different stroke and was passed on to the next level (most of the time, at least).
The one thing that I really disliked was treading water. There was no forward movement. There was no visible end point. You just had to keep going until the instructor blew the whistle – but you didn’t know when that would be.
As I write this, my daughter and I are on Day 5 of our fifth hospital visit in five months. People keep asking how I’m doing and I realized this morning that the best I can come up with to describe it is that I feel like I’m treading water. A few weeks ago, when she had her surgeries, I thought we were making forward movement. I was so hopeful that they would correct the problems that had arisen and we could move on with enjoying life. Instead, we keep getting pushed back into the deep end of the pool. We tread water, so to speak, until the whistle blows and we can get our feet on the ground again.
We’re tired. This time, she’s exhausted from the pain and I’m weary from the helplessness I feel while watching her fight it. Teams of people are working to figure it out. Answers are slowly coming to the surface but it feels like they’re pulling us into deeper water.
I decided to look for an applicable Bible verse that I could try to keep in the forefront of my mind. I found this.
Isaiah 43:2 (NIV)
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you”
So many of us are going through hard things right now. We are weary and fighting to keep our heads above water. God does not promise that life will be easy, but He does promise to be with us in the struggle. Despite how deep the water becomes, he will not let it pull us under. Keep swimming!
The one thing that I really disliked was treading water. There was no forward movement. There was no visible end point. You just had to keep going until the instructor blew the whistle – but you didn’t know when that would be.
As I write this, my daughter and I are on Day 5 of our fifth hospital visit in five months. People keep asking how I’m doing and I realized this morning that the best I can come up with to describe it is that I feel like I’m treading water. A few weeks ago, when she had her surgeries, I thought we were making forward movement. I was so hopeful that they would correct the problems that had arisen and we could move on with enjoying life. Instead, we keep getting pushed back into the deep end of the pool. We tread water, so to speak, until the whistle blows and we can get our feet on the ground again.
We’re tired. This time, she’s exhausted from the pain and I’m weary from the helplessness I feel while watching her fight it. Teams of people are working to figure it out. Answers are slowly coming to the surface but it feels like they’re pulling us into deeper water.
I decided to look for an applicable Bible verse that I could try to keep in the forefront of my mind. I found this.
Isaiah 43:2 (NIV)
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you”
So many of us are going through hard things right now. We are weary and fighting to keep our heads above water. God does not promise that life will be easy, but He does promise to be with us in the struggle. Despite how deep the water becomes, he will not let it pull us under. Keep swimming!