Dear Emily,
We just returned on Friday from five days together at the beach. Early last Sunday morning, eight of us
piled into Uncle Robert’s car and your Daddy’s truck and took off for Orange
Beach where we relaxed in the sun, the surf, and the pool. You spent most of your time at the pool
because you don’t like the grit of the sand in your toes or the splash of the
ocean water in your eyes. The
adults rotated between the pool and the beach so that everybody could enjoy the
time – the pool and the beach.
You like the water. You just don’t like the water in your
eyes. When I reminded you that
last year you were swimming with your head under water, you said that
underwater swimming would not be happening this year! That was on Day One.
But familiarity and experience have a way of bolstering confidence and
changing attitudes. By the end of
Day Two, you were jumping off the steps, willing to get a little water on your
face. By Day Three you were again
swimming with your head under water, jumping and diving off the side of the
pool and going under before I pulled you to the surface. Day Four was the highlight day!! Not only were you running and jumping
in the pool, you were actually doing flips from the side into the water. Big Wow!!
Lately you have been asking questions about Jesus. At five years old, you can declare that
Jesus died on the cross to save us from sin. That’s not surprising since you have been in church since
before you were born!! You
point out the Jesus is God and vice-versa. Again – Sunday school has paid
off! It’s the belief that
Jesus rose from the dead and is alive even though we can’t see him that stumps
you. How can that be? How do we know? These are questions that all of us
wrestle with from time to time. It
doesn’t matter if you are five or sixty-five…..is God real? Does He care for us?
Emily, believing in the
existence of God and the resurrection of Jesus, (even though he doesn’t
physically show up for the Sunday sermon or at bedtime to hear your prayers) is
called faith. Faith is what you
have when you jump off the side of the pool into water over your head. You couldn’t see me when you went
under, but you knew I was there and you had faith that I would make sure that
you were safe. Because you know
that I love you, you knew you could trust me. Faith in God is basically the same. Faith is knowing that God is alive and
active in our lives, and that He cares for us every day. You build that confidence through
building a relationship with God – reading the Bible and saying your
prayers. And just like jumping in
the pool and swimming underwater got easier the more you did it, the more you
read about God and talk to God, the easier it will be to have faith in Him.
I am so proud of you! No
doubt you are on your way to becoming a strong swimmer and a devoted disciple. Big Wow!!
Love and Blessings,
BB
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