Sunday by the Sea

"Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?" ~ Jeremiah 5:22

It can be hard to trust. The verse above fits so well with what I have read so far in MaryLu Tyndall's book Surrender the Heart that I wanted to share it with you. Marianne Denton, the main character of the book, is afraid of the sea. Her father died in the sea, and she is fearful that it might take her, too.

In the very first chapter of the book, Marianne looks out the window of her home as she finishes preparing for her engagement party. This is Marianne's observation:

"A bell rang in the distance, drawing Marianne's attention to the maze of ship masts that thrust into the sky like iron bars of a prison. A prison that could not constrain the ravenous indigo waters from feeding upon the innocent--an innocent like her father."

What a contrast to the verse from Jeremiah! Marianne struggles with trusting in God, and she imagines that the sea cannot be controlled. And yet God tells us in the verses above that the sea cannot cross the boundaries He has made for it. He is in control of the sea and all of Creation.

No matter how frightening the sea or any of the situations in our lives appear to be--tossing and roaring--God is sovereign and He is in control of it all. We have nothing to fear because God is eternal and He is omnipotent. We can trust in Him.

I'm not quite halfway through Surrender the Heart, but already I can see the growth in Marianne's character. And I am certain that she will continue to grow in her faith as the book progresses, through all of the hardships she must face. In her story I am reminded of my need to trust God in all things, because He is indeed in control of all things.

I think a wonderful conclusion to these thoughts is a verse that was on my calendar for today. It reads:

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you." ~ Isaiah 43:2

Marianne finds herself on different ships out on the sea. Perhaps some of us feel that we are also out upon the sea of our worst fears. But we must remember that not only can we trust God's sovereignty, but we can also trust that He will be right there beside us through it all.

(The picture above is of my sister and I several years or so ago, looking out at the bay in our home county.)