What a week! We have enjoyed some time at our lake home. I hesitate to call it “vacation,” since we are still actively online and phones and extra travel, but we are vacationing from the scheduled soccer and school. God’s artistry in sunrises, sunsets and everything else seems so beautiful when reflected on water.
Reflections on water can lead to reflections on life.
I love “early morning fishing” with my kids. I select one (or sometimes two) of my children, put them in a canoe with a trolling motor, some poles and lures, and we head out to watch the sunrise, while we entice the unseen creatures below.
Why early?
At 5:30am, the lake is serene – no boat wakes or phones with which to contend, no schedules to compete for my kids’ time, just peace outside of two voices – theirs and mine. Oh yeah, and some say the fish bite more at dawn.
Why Photos?
The entire family doesn’t fit into our 3-seated vessel, so we share our victories via camera. Sometimes, on a day without bites, it is fun to go through the photos, to remember the big ones will come!
…
But it’s not about the fish.
“Mom, it doesn’t matter if we catch any fish today,” my 8-year-old serenely said as the trolling motor left a silent “V” sketched in the placid lake behind us. “It is just nice being with you.”
It is a time of reflection – of the new sun off the mirror of water, and of my kids’ thoughts of this turning world. They ask questions in those peaceful hours that maybe get lost in our ninety-miles-per-hour days.
“Do you think I am not catching fish today because I sin too much?”
Pensive.
“Is it ever ok to get angry, because… didn’t Jesus get angry?”
Fighting strong, but wanting answers with a friend along at 5:45am!
My kids’ discussion questions roll out with the line behind the boat. I just want to make sure they know that I am here; I have a listening ear; I am ready with open arms when the storms send unsettling waves. If they don’t know that when they’re 8, they won’t know to look for it when they’re 18.
I LOVE our early times together. I couldn’t help but see the parallel to morning quiet times with God.
Quiet Time with God
Why early?
Before the sun, the world is serene – no waves or phones with which to contend, no schedules to compete with the time (except for the pillow – the evil contender!)
Why Notebook?
Like a photo to share with family, a notebook records my wrestling moments, my tearful prayer requests, and the gut-wrenching thoughts that once prevented my sleep. The answers received through these early morning times with Him are revealed when I read the journal years later. It encourages me: today’s resolution will come in His timing, too.
But it’s not about the ritual; it’s about the relationship.
It is a time when I can tell Him, “It is ok if I don’t catch anything today, I just enjoy being with You.”
In His Word I am reminded that He is here. He has a listening ear; He is ready with open arms when the storms send unsettling waves – which sometimes are the lure that got me there in the first place.
…
“Don’t let your child be the ‘one that got away’,” is the advertisement line from Zebco fishing equipment. Maybe someone at that company had some good fishing conversations with his kids, too.
Girlfriend, don’t be the one who got away from God. As Rick Warren says,
“If you feel far from God right now, guess who moved.”
Tomorrow: tell the pillow to have a good day without you. Grab a pen, a notebook and a Bible, and enjoy a relationship with Him. Read, pray, speak and listen.
“Failure in my life almost always begins with a famine of God’s Word and prayer.” – Anne Graham Lotz
“It’s better to be sleep deprived than God deprived.” – Jill Briscoe
Eternally His,
Terri
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