So yesterday was my solo float! I try super hard to go at least once a week and canoe alone to just clear my head, hang out with the Lord, and absorb a bit of God's creation!! Honestly, this is the best stress reliever EVER (followed closely by wood splitting and stacking!)!!
And it's about wayyyy more than relieving stress, its about being able to take a couple of hours and step out of the day-to-day and be immersed in beauty.
It's about carving the opportunity to slow down and notice.
And it's about the water!!
I was a bit surprised at my immense and immediate love of all things RIVER! But William said that considering my amazement with the ocean, he wasn't. :)
Anyway....back to my story!!
So as I began my journey I was praying and just asking the Lord to clear my head and fill it only with His thoughts and ideas and I pretty quickly figured out what He wanted to teach me.
You see, due to rain that we had recently received, the river was running pretty swiftly and being that it was my first time to float this spot I was surprised at the high and frequent number of obstacles that came up. That was when God began to gently speak into my soul about life...about obstacles.
When canoeing, I make great effort to avoid obstacles and was rapidly becoming distressed at the number of them I saw ahead. I couldn't see it well enough to know which side would be the best to pass by on or how best to handle what was coming.
I saw just enough to know that it was coming.
That is when the Lord taught me my first lesson regarding obstacles. There was a huge mound of tree branches that I could see down stream and I had no idea how to proceed and like I said, I quickly became distressed. Then He showed me how much I was missing!
I was missing the beauty of where I was at...what I was passing through because I was so caught up in what I "thought" was coming.
In actuality, once I got there it was pretty easy to steer around.
My second lesson was a good one too.
Since this was a longer float I had ample time to get to know the water better, and I noticed something. When there are obstacles hidden by water, the surface changes. Sometimes it looks more smooth than the rest, and sometimes more turbulent, but there is usually some slight difference from the surrounding, obstacle free waters.
Kinda like in life. Some of our obstacles are hidden, but if we look carefully we can see signs. For me, the biggest surface change that indicates trouble is coming is when I neglect to start my day in the Word and in prayer. That is my tell-tale sign.
For others of you it could be trouble sleeping, listening to negative thoughts in your head, etc. But we all have some type of surface change indicator.
The final lesson He showed me was in perception of the obstacle. You see, by the end of a two-hour float...I had to potty!! And the sound of the rushing river was making it worse :)
So as I began to become annoyed by the noise God helped me notice something. At the beginning of the float I adored the sound of the water. It was peaceful and calming, but at the end it just caused me misery and pain (that may be a bit dramatic, but you know what I mean!).
But you know what He showed me? The sound never changed!! It was just my focus.
It was the same sound I heard at the end of the trip that I enjoyed at the beginning but instead of focusing on the beauty of the river, I was thinking about my need to go to the bathroom!
And in life when I focus on something other than Jesus, my perception changes. A beautiful journey can become one of annoyance and despair.
At this point I was pretty sure I was done with the obstacle lessons and then BAM!! I ran smack dab into a tree!!
So now I'm stuck in the tree and I start trying to figure out how I'm going to get out of it and it is in said tree that I was taught one more...fabulous lesson!!
Canoeing isn't so much about avoiding all of the obstacles as it is about staying balanced.
You see, that tree was an unavoidable obstacle. I really see no way that I could have not run into it. But the key came in trying to maintain my balance.
And what a great life lesson that was for me.
Sometimes no matter how much I try to avoid them...obstacles are going to come.
And there are times when we just have to hold on to the sides of the canoe and run into the tree.
But that doesn't have to destroy my float. If I can allow God to keep my focus on the beauty and His glory...If I will seek Him to keep me in balance...I can overcome the obstacle.
I might be stuck on it for a while, like a giant tree in the river, but by letting Him take over, I can maintain my balance and overcome.
