In the hustle of church activities, work, summer sports, camps, trips and more, summer in this season of life with two adolescent kids is not quite as free and easy as is often advertised.
Consequently, when we realized all four of us were free on the same days of July 3 and 4, we decided to relive some of our best family memories of primitive camping on one of the many TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority)-owned islands on Douglas Lake.
Excited by the possibility of disconnecting from the outside world and connecting with each other, we loaded our four kayaks with camping gear and launched our boats across the street from the house where we were staying.
After paddling a mere 100 feet from shore, the blue sky turned black and a heavy downpour drenched us for roughly five minutes.
A warning
We could not communicate in the storm, and my husband and the kids continued to paddle forward while I turned back to the shore.
When the rain stopped, the blue skies returned with no hint of the former storm. In retrospect, this was likely God’s loud whisper nudging us to change our plans. But we failed to hear His warning.
From the boat launch, I could see the rest of my family ashore on an island about a half-mile away, and I joined them shortly.
We hung up what needed to dry, set up camp and jumped in the lake for an afternoon of swimming and playing on our little island oasis.
Unfortunately, two game wardens in a boat informed us we had chosen the one island, a wildlife refuge, where camping was not allowed. We escaped a ticket but were instructed to head home with a warning to watch out for other boats in the dark.
We set out in our kayaks with makeshift navigation lights: my husband with a cell phone flashlight app in one hand balancing a paddle in the other; our 12-year-old daughter followed with a small camping lantern between her knees; our 10-year-old son came next with a headlamp; and I trailed with a flashlight in my mouth.
Once again, after paddling about 100 feet, the sky clouded over, and soon afterward, lightning began spiderwebbing across the sky and the wind began to pick up.
On top of that, a large boat passed in front of us, almost clipping the front of my daughter’s boat. The wake that followed combined with the wind nearly capsized us all. Moreover, as the wind picked up further, we were widely separated, substantially off course and unable to make forward progress.
Relieved surrender
Over our own distressed utterances, we heard voices on the shoreline where the wind had been pushing us, asking, “Are you ok? Do you need help?” and urging us to “Come over here!”
My husband and I glanced at each other with relieved surrender. The wind guided us smoothly to the shore where about a dozen people from the permanent campground were waiting. They helped us, piece by piece, unload our kayaks and made a ramp out of ladders to bring the boats up from the water. They then loaded my husband and kids into their truck to take them home, while I waited with the boats.
Then the skies opened with rain, wind, thunder and lightning that would continue for most of the night. The campers gave me shelter until my husband returned. Then, as their final act of kindness, they helped load all four boats on the trailer.
Our family saw the hand of God in all the events of that evening: Looking outside at the tremendous storm that had not been predicted, we agreed that camping that night would have been quite dangerous.
Had we not been camping on the only prohibited island in the lake, no one would have come to tell us to leave. As it was, God sent word in the form of two wildlife resources agents.
Guided safely home
On the water, as the big boat passed a little too close to our kayaks, our cries to the driver were carried by the wind across the water to the ears of our rescuers, turning their attention to our poorly lit, tiny vessels.
Finally, when my daughter lamented that she could not paddle anymore because the wind was too strong, I had told her, “Stop paddling against the wind. Just let go and let the wind push you into the shore.”
God took us from the middle of a storm and, through His wind, guided us safely home. This changed our perspectives about the danger we had endured.
We realized that the God of the universe, ruler of the land and the seas and all that is in them, is mindful of a meager family of four on a Tennessee lake.
I often try to power through any struggle in life on my own strength and generally fall short.
‘Let the wind push you’
But in the future, I plan to take my own advice and remember who is in control: “Stop paddling against the wind. Just let go and let the wind push you into the shore.”
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts” (Zech. 4:6).
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was originally published by Baptist Message.
Pastors,
No Christless sermons, no comedy shows, no therapeutic deism, no political idolatry. Get in that pulpit, in the power of the Holy Spirit and preach endless treasures available in Christ Jesus!
@DerwinLGray
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I’ve got peace like a river in my soul. It doesn’t matter what’s going on in the world. I know that if God is with me and in me, I can have peace.
@redletterdesignsco
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Let all physical pain remind you of Christ’s sufferings for you on the cross and of the eternal freedom from pain you’ll enjoy in heaven.
@AndyDavisFBC
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“Don’t let your church service become part of the ignorable noise in their life. Instead, use controlled messages to lead them to a decision. Don’t assume they’ll figure it out,” said Mark MacDonald, communication consultant and strategist for BeKnownforSomething.com.
Are you purposefully cultivating your God-given identity? This starts by consistently spending time with God. One of my favorite tips is to start the day with God, even if it’s just for a few minutes.
After the kids are off to school, I love grabbing a cup of hot chai (with a bit of heavy cream — yum), my Bible, journal, and spending time with Jesus. … It sure starts the entire day off right.
@arabahjoy
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Dear hurting one,
You are not forgotten. I’m asking God to help you see glimmers of His goodness in unlikely places. And to help you remember you are not alone.
@LysaTerKeurst
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“The fear of the Lord is when we love what He loves, and we hate what He hates. The legalist would say, ‘I fear God. That’s why I hate those sinners over there.’ That guy doesn’t fear God at all because He hates who God loves,” said John Bevere, author of “The Awe of God.”
A family centered on Jesus will always beat a youth group growing in numbers. Parents, be the spiritual leaders your teens need.
@davesnyder82
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“If God’s my identity, then I have room to fail and be able to keep going. One of the biggest ways I see God having worked in my life to get me to where I am right now is in the ways He helps me not to give up. … I can be pushed forward because I know who I am,” said illustrator, artist and author Amy Grimes.
Self-help: You are enough.
Bible: You’re not enough. God is enough.
Self-help: Believe in yourself.
Bible: Deny yourself. Believe in God.
Self-help: Follow your heart.
Bible: You need a new heart. Follow Jesus.
Self-help: Live your truth.
Bible: Jesus is the truth. He is Life.
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Hopefully this time next year I can look back and feel more accomplished in my attempts. But it’ll take a lot of work and some different choices to strive towards meeting those goals.
Hannah Muñoz
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