Caught In A Riptide

Caught In A Riptide

Growing up in West Virginia and then moving to Tennessee, I have only been to the beach a couple of times. But for those of you who have lived on the coast or have visited more frequently, you are probably familiar with a riptide. A riptide is a strong unpredictable current that flows across the normal direction of water flow. They are especially dangerous to novice swimmers or people who are unfamiliar with how to negotiate them. Even a strong swimmer can tire themselves out by trying to fight against one, thus becoming susceptible to drowning. There are safety measures you can take to avoid putting yourself in one and there are measures you can learn that will greatly increase your survival if you ever are unlucky enough to encounter one. Before planning your next beach trip, brushing up on these safety measures would be wise

Now let’s talk about parachuting. You may have no desire to jump out of a perfectly good airplane, suspended by thin nylon rope tied to a heavy-duty tarp, but many people find this sport liberating and exhilarating. While I have never mustered the courage to do it, I think for some, it is as close as you can get to flying like a bird. The main thing about this, that I want to mention is what happens, as soon as they touch down. I’m sure you’ve seen it on TV where the second their feet hit the ground, they detach themselves from their parachute, and immediately start folding and trapping the chute to the ground. They do this so they don’t get caught up in the wind, and get pulled along like a man who lassoed the back of a racecar. Ok now that I’ve got you good and confused and you’re thinking wow, these are interesting things to know about, but what does one have to do with the other? I thought this guy wrote biblical stories that teach practical application to our lives. I’m so happy you’re thinking that, it shows you have read some of my stuff, and have expectations, which I will immediately address.

I’ve been noticing a pattern forming in my life lately, that could be described as a problem beginning to develop or maybe it has existed for a while and only recently becoming more predominant where I have begun to take notice. It is not uncommon, for people to get busier after they retire. You have more time on your hands and are free to do things you never had time for when you were working. One of the things people do to utilize their time is volunteer to help others, often this may include family members. You may start babysitting your Grandchildren, or become the go-to guy for everyone finding themselves in need of a ride, or getting the kids picked up. There are millions of things that people will gladly take off their plates and place on yours if you are willing to do it. While I’m not complaining or saying that is a bad thing, because it brings most of us joy, being able to help. But like anything else, too much of even a good thing can become bad! You can voluntarily or be drafted into doing so much, that you wake up one day and realize, you no longer have a life, you have given it away in pieces. Ok, you can breathe now. This is where I tie all this together in a nice neat bundle, and start making sense of all this.

Each of us has an idea in our minds of what we want in our lives and the person we want to be. We set out to live that life and be as happy as possible. We set standards, and develop morals and ethics, that support who we choose to be. We go about the business, of living life and trying to achieve our goals. As long as your standards and goals don’t include God, then most likely you won’t get a whole lot of grief from Satan. But if you choose to live your life for God, Satan will come after you with everything he has trying to throw you off your game and keep you distracted from your goals. Sometimes he will come directly at you, attacking you in whatever area of your life you are most vulnerable. But more often than not, he likes to use subversive tactics like sneaking things into your life a little at a time until you wake up one day and realize he has taken control and is running your life.  

Even innocent little things that by themselves would be good, can become detrimental when you become overwhelmed by their magnitude. You look up one day and realize you are stressed out and struggling to make it through another day. You may feel like the swimmer who gets caught in a riptide and no matter how hard you swim, you aren’t gaining any ground. You feel like you are being swept out into the sea. When Satan gets his hooks in you, sometimes you feel powerless to fight back. It appears like there are no easy clear-cut answers. How can I tell my son or daughter, that I can’t babysit or pick their children up from school? They are depending on me and don’t have any other means. How can I disappoint the folks down at the church, they count on my help. Suddenly you realize, that your life has been taken over. You must have forgotten to detach from that parachute and are being haphazardly dragged through the woods while the tree limbs are beating and whipping you as you are being dragged along. How did you allow yourself to get caught up in this predicament? You don’t have time to study your Bible, time to fellowship with the Lord, or hardly time to pray. Your spouse is beginning to feel neglected, your yard looks pretty rough, and you have needed a haircut for a while now.

I know we have discussed priorities in the past, and how God wants us to put him first. But you didn’t see a problem with that because you’re not out partying or doing things you shouldn’t do. But what you have done and are guilty of, is stretching yourself too thin and getting your priorities mixed up. When I was in the Boy Scouts, I attended Life Guard School. And one of the first and most serious rules they taught us, was that we had to take care of ourselves first. The reasoning was simple, if you allowed yourself to become a victim, you were no longer of use, to anyone else, and you added one person to the people who needed to be rescued.

            I applaud anyone who selflessly wants to help others, your actions are admirable, but we all need to adhere to that rule for lifeguards. What good are you to anyone if you get spread so thin you allow your health to deteriorate, or your relationships to suffer? The key to avoiding this is finding balance, and reminding yourself that you are only one person. Like I said, if we allow Satan to trick us into trying to play God, we unintentionally separate ourselves from God, and will soon begin to suffer the effects. God loves a kind-hearted giver. But he wants to be a part of that with you. He tells us to do all things for his glory. But he warns us not to try to do them on our own. That is how we seemingly do everything right and still discover we have gone astray.

At any time and for any reason, if we nudge God out of the equation, whether for noble reasons or not, we set ourselves up for failure. Whether it be in actions or thoughts, we are making a huge mistake. Some of us worry ourselves to death, about the well-being of others. We try to mother people to the point where we think we can prevent them from falling and bruising their elbows, or skinning their knees. That may be a noble and compassionate desire, but in reality, it is quite impossible. Not in every case, but frequently you are enabling these people to continue being irresponsible or lazy. Why should they step up their game and figure out a solution for dealing with life’s problems, if you will do it for them? Loving and caring is one thing, but codling and spoiling is quite another. There is a familiar term called, “Hard Love”, and it should never be discounted or underrated. God doesn’t cause us harm, but he will allow us to go through trials. He does that to allow and encourage us to grow. Since he is the perfect Father, we should follow his examples when it comes to parenting or even helping others. You know the old expression that goes something like, “You can give a man a fish and feed him for a night, or you can teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime.”

So, if you find that you are caught up with all these things I’ve mentioned, remind yourself of the following things;

• You must take care of yourself first, emotionally, physically, spiritually
• Are you trying to play God
• Are you helping or enabling
• Who is doing the steering, you or God
• What is your motivation for helping, love, or a need for control
• Are you feeding them, or teaching them to fish
• Are you remembering to love yourself and allowing God to love you
• Have you allowed your service to others to become an idol

Remember this too, God doesn’t even promise to take all our problems away for us, he only promises that he will walk with us. If you think for one minute, that you can do more than what God promises, you are kidding yourself and setting yourself up for a fall. Loving and caring is one thing, but overreaching is quite another.

Editors Comment:

Satan is so cunning, he can take your good intentions and twist them or distort them, he can take the goodness in your heart and use it as a weapon against you. He can misguide your works and turn them into an idol. But when we give our hearts to God, we have his ever-watchful eye upon our lives. Like the great father that he is, he might allow us to suffer a few bumps and scratches. But ultimately, we are his children and he is greater than Satan, so he will only suffer us to go astray so far, before yanking our ropes and reminding us we are messing up. This is the uneasiness I described feeling lately, so I thought sharing my story may help someone else experiencing a similar situation. If you are struggling with this or any other situation, I would love to hear your stories. You can contact me through this website or Email > [email protected]. Maybe by sharing your story, you could lift up someone else who might be sharing your struggles.

Scripture of The Day:  Galatians 6:1-4

“Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; lest though also be tempted. Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ, For if any man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.”