The Waters of Circumstance: Part 1

Our lives are so easily ruled by our circumstances. Too easily ruled by our circumstances. We are told to make the best of them, but they seem to make the best (or worse) of us. They’re life. And “life throws things at you.” They become “your lot in life.” They’re just your “part of life.” Your circumstances are just your “river of life.” See we view our circumstances as the water in the river of our lives. Whatever way the current runs, we float along. And however strong it takes us, is how fast we will go. We think they have complete control over our lives and can dictate everything about us. But God rules circumstances. He dictates the currents and the speeds of our lives. If God has power over circumstances, and we have trust in God, then circumstances have no power over us. See, it is not our circumstances that either make or break us; but it is how we deal with them. It is our perspective in them, not our powerlessness over them that makes all the difference. Is God in control of this or not? Is this for our good or not? Should we then complain or not? We must have a proper perspective of circumstances before we will be able to live as we were meant to in them. This is one of the most important requirements of the rejoicing Christian.

So what shall we compare our circumstances to? What are they like, and how should we approach them? What perspective should guide us in the midst of prosperity and circumstances of adversity and suffering? Answering these questions will be invaluable to both our every days lives as well as for the day we get that one unexpected phone call.

Circumstances are like the waves on the seas of our lives. One day they are calm, still, peaceful, relaxed, and refreshing- waters of ease and comfort. The next they are rough, stormy, dark, frenzied and chaotic; they create a tempest, hitting you from every side, and they seem to just toss you about; they disorient you, drain you, and threaten to sink the boat of your very life. And the waves change suddenly and dramatically. The moment you look down to see gentle waves below you, you look up to see a violent storm before you. They are dangerous waters indeed. Yes, they are cursed waters. They have been since the first ship set its sails upon them. Cursed altogether. In fact, their storms are just as cursed as their silence.

Picture the seen of the still and peaceful waters. Picture them as the smooth and pleasant waters of your life as you coast along them- easy waters, nice waters, comfortable waters. But remember: cursed waters. And perhaps their stillness is more treacherous than their storms. For it is more subtle. You hear no thunder in the distance; you see no dark clouds on the horizon. When they are still, then it is that they are captivating- you look only a moment too long and you are enticed to throw out the anchor and take a break from your set voyage to the safe haven; to stop and relax and lounge about in the waters. They are so calm, so peaceful; they feel so good, so relaxing. But they are deadly. Beware if you find yourself in these waters! The deceptively calm waters of this world claim more souls than the stormy ones. They are as satanic as they are soothing- if you trust in them. It is just as you lose yourself in these soothing waters that the great sea dragon Leviathan is beneath you, sizing you up from below. The Evil One is stalking you from the depths. Prowling nearer, and nearer, without a noise or a ripple to be seen. He is just waiting for you to forget where you are and forget where you are going, playing around in these easy waters. It is then that he leaps upon his prey, his roaring jaws snapping in a death-lock and dragging the unsuspecting victim underwater to its death. Oh, do be wary that you do not linger too long! Enjoy these waters of prosperity, of peace, and restoration, but do not lose yourself in them. Do not look into them too long. Oh how our eyes are enticed so quickly by the ease and comfort of the waters of this life! Do not be naïve! Keep yourself watchful! Stay alert! Always have an eye fixed on the destination! You are on a voyage! And your life depends on your safe arrival to the heavenly shore! Your odyssey is through these waters, but it is not in them. It is in Paradise! across this sea! Take advantage of the smooth waters and open your sails full of God’s grace so that you might journey on with speed.

But there is another person, on another vessel, who is traveling in far different waters than these. This one’s waters are far from easy and comfortable. Oh no, this person can hardly remember what calm water even looks like! They can barely remember the last time it was still, and gently rolling about them, or recall its refreshing cool, or its peaceful sound. This might be you. Your life is one filled with tumultuous waters. You are locked in its grasp, sucked in and spiraling around and around in this giant whirlpool. Your enemy is not stalking you from below, no, he is upon you already! Perhaps he has asked permission to sift you like wheat, or to treat you as he did Job and take away everything from you but your very breath. Perhaps this storm is a storm of sins that you have been lost in for sometime. Or, maybe it is a storm of persecution, or poverty, or sickness. But, whatever the case, it is truly a fierce and terrible storm to you! -slamming into the side of your ship, spinning you around, rocking your whole life apart. Wave after wave is piling over you, relentless: just crashing upon you from all sides- so loud, so hard, you can barely hear yourself think! You are in a storm, the wind is howling, the sky is black, and all you can see before you are endless rows of towering waves. Oh yes, yours is a dark sea indeed! You are beyond tired; you’re defeated. The wind of your sails is far from blown out; your sails are torn to shreds already. The waters of your world are far from subtle and deceptive; they are upon you even now; and perhaps so heavily and so powerfully you feel totally hopeless in this storm. Where can you go? What can you do? If you jump ship and try to swim away, you will drown. If you stay and cling to whatever you can you will sink. And maybe you have already tried both. And maybe you have already drowned; your ship has already sunk. Maybe you are just floating there unconscious, arms somehow draped over a broken piece of what was once your ship, your life. Maybe, it is as though your whole life is one big shipwreck already.

The truth is, everyone is sailing through different waters. Yes, there are no new forms of these waters that are not common to man. But, here me, they are unique to you. You maybe have never had to go through what you’re going through right now, even though someone else has. The water you’re sailing in- the circumstances you’re in- have never come against such a ship as yours- with your own personality, and strengths and weaknesses, and history, and flaws, and the way you alone were put together. And maybe you have had to deal with whatever it is before. Maybe you’ve been sailing through the same rough waters for a very long time: the same sin, the same relationships, the same sickness, the same trials. Even so, the waters may be the most common, but you, the ship sailing across them, are totally unique. There has never been a ship like you to go through even the most ordinary waters of circumstance.

But no matter who you are, and no matter what kind of water you’re going through right now in life, know this: there is hope for you. There is good news. His name is Jesus Christ.