Beneath the Surface

I just returned home from a once-in-a-lifetime trip. The kind that lingers. The kind that changes you. I knew it would be epic before I even left, but I'm still in awe of everything I encountered over the last couple of weeks exploring parts of New Zealand and Australia.

I made lifelong memories with family and saw the world through the eyes of new friends. I experienced so many 'firsts' on the trip, including a first true look into the world that lies beneath the surface. 

Growing up in North Texas, beach vacations weren't exactly easy to come by 😉 I've never cruised or spent any length of time in the ocean...until this trip. Seven days on a boat. Enough time to not rush...to take a deep breath and soak it all up. To jet ski. To fish. To snorkel. To watch the whales playfully breach the surface. To fall asleep to the rhythm of the boat gently rocking. 

This trip also impressed on me an even deeper appreciation for the creativity of our God. Fish of all colors and patterns swirled underneath me. Coral reefs were filled with a variety of textures and colors -- even some that glowed brightly like fluorescent markers! I almost stepped on a stingray resting on the ocean floor, and I swam behind a giant turtle gracefully making its way down the rocky shoreline. 

One of my favorite experiences was hearing the whales sing underwater during my final night on the boat. 🥰 It was surreal and perfectly reflected my mixed emotions as I laid in bed and pondered over my experiences. 

You see, when I've viewed the ocean in the past, it was from the perspective of an observer standing on a beach or looking down from a plane. It was always from a distance. But on this trip, I was blessed to go beneath the surface and observe from an entirely new perspective.

As I thought about that, I realized two things. First, people are a lot like the ocean. 

In this busy world, people are often judged based on a quick impression...a surface glance. Unless you take the time to truly look, you miss their fear of an unknown future. You miss their pain of lingering grief. You miss their anger of betrayal. So many complicated emotions become glazed over and hidden from casual observers.

But when you're willing to enter into their world and submerge your own head beneath the surface, you see things differently. There is a depth to people that is unveiled only with time, effort, and sacrifice.

Has God placed someone in your life who needs a friend who is wiling to look beneath the surface? Perhaps they simply need someone to genuinely see them. To see their struggles. To see their pain. To see the beauty and strength that is buried deep and coax it to the surface. Not to "fix" them, but to encourage and challenge them to become the person whom God designed them to be.

Don't allow the busyness of the world around you drown out the deep layers of those whom God has placed in your life. In a culture focused on the surface, be willing to go deep. 

The second realization that I had was that this same principle applies to our view of God. 

So often, people form an opinion about God based on their first impression...a surface glance as an observer...from a distance. Sometimes they base their beliefs on what they hear second-hand rather than through a personal encounter. 

But there's a big difference between knowing about God and knowing God...between information and relationship.

Are you standing on the shoreline and observing Him, or are you putting your head beneath the surface and experiencing Him? Are you willing to invest the same time, effort, and sacrifice that it takes to really know a friend, into knowing the depths of God?

Multiple times in the Bible, God promises that those who sincerely seek Him will find Him. He doesn't play games. He's not judging you for hesitating or for your past choices. He's inviting you to look beneath the surface and explore His countless facets.  

So whether God is calling you to be a better friend to someone He's placed in your life or He's inviting you to get to know Him better (or both!), dive in deep -- you won't regret the treasures you discover hidden in the depths beneath the surface.