I’ve just returned from a holiday in Cornwall where I watched my five-year-old granddaughter have her first surf lesson.
Surfing is all about ‘riding the waves’; surfers stand on a surf board and glide across the water until the wave breaks and loses its energy. What is impressive about watching surfers is how they manage to stand upright and balance on what is essentially an unstable surface. They start by doing this on the more stable surface of the sand before taking the board out to sea. Most people find it easy enough to stand on a board on the sand; standing in moving water requires practice, dexterity and balance.
What impressed me most about my granddaughter was her enthusiasm and perseverance. She couldn’t stand up straightaway. At times, she fell off into the sea. But she carried on, undaunted, and on the occasions when she managed to ride to shore still upright, the beam on her face was all we needed to know about the power of accomplishment!
It didn’t seem to matter to her how many times she fell off in the process; she simply got back up and had another go.
That is a parable for life. We fall and fail many times, but failure is no reason to give up. God wants us to get up and have another go. He pulls us up by the hand and encourages us to try again. Every time my granddaughter did well, the instructor gave her a ‘high five’, encouraging smiles and lots of praise. Every time she failed, he was there at her side, encouraging her on by name.
What a picture of life! We have God’s Holy Spirit within us, urging us on, encouraging us, moving us forward, picking us up when we fail, helping us. We stood on the shore cheering her on, shouting encouragement and clapping when she did well; we have other Christians alongside us, also urging us on and picking us up when we fall. (Heb 12:1-3)
So ride the waves of life. Don’t worry if you fall and get wet. Get back on that surfboard and relish the challenges of life, because you were made to surf!