No Wavering…

I recently reflected on some childhood memories regarding the ocean and its waves. I smiled as I thought how going to the beach was a fun time as a child. As I reflected I could smell the salt air, hear the clatter and roar of the waves. I looked up and could imagine the seagulls fly overhead looking for something to eat. I can still feel the gravitational pull of the water as it would tug at my legs. I could hear myself call out to my mom, “it wants to take me in, it wants to take me in.” The hot sand was soothing after being out in the cold water, and as messy as it was to eat on the sand; as children we didn’t mind removing it from the food.
Now that I’m older I enjoy the sounds of the waves as they move from the gravity of the sun, the moon and the wind. I understand waves create themselves by the energy that passes through the ocean water. They move in circular motion. Thus the ocean is never still.
As I watched the waves in my mind I thought about how unsettling they are and their powerful instability is not something I could depend on. Perhaps this is why I prefer to watch and listen to them in lieu of being in them. I also understand why the Apostle James compared unsteadiness to the waves of the sea. He wrote, “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.” James 1:6
Lately, I have been sensing the dreaded “unsettling” of my spirit. But, James recaps that my faith in God is my saneness. My faith can’t be like the surface waves created by the friction between wind and surface water. I need to be steady, and grounded in the Word and trust it to give me the solidity I need when I sense the disquieting of my spirit.
God is always there; more willing to help than I am to ask. The wisdom I need is available and he will as the scripture says, “generously” provide it. How can I not trust the Lord?