washed by the water

I love to watch the ocean waves roll in... wave after wave. I love to watch each soft gentle swell rise up to a peak, then crash around in a turbulent swirl of foam and bubbles. Sometimes the wind catches it just right, and the finest mist of salty spray is tossed up into the breeze. And then the bubbling foam turns back into a gentle current that gracefully laps the seashore and lazily washes the sand of any imperfections that we have created... castles built tall and sure; words carved deep into the packed sand; even our trailing footprints. Time after time the mighty ocean sweeps in and smooths out all of the rough edges and leaves the beach just as it was meant to be- natural and untouched. I have been witness to many ferocious storms and ocean waves so dark and destructive- waves that have splintered homes and washed away dreams in a single tide. The power of the ocean always amazes me... good or bad.. and once the storm has passed, a new day lights upon us and the ocean has once again been calmed by God's mighty hand... and the waves are once again gentle. In our lives, days pass swiftly... calm, gentle days, and mighty, ferocious days... and yet, each day is as blessed as the next. Each day God comes in and washes away the imperfections that we have scattered in the sand. He takes the harshness and the horrible out into the raging tide and, in His time, sends it back to us, tumbled by the waves, washed in His love and grace, so that the edges are no longer rough... and we can tuck it away in our pocket, as a remembrance... a lesson. The sandy beach... the dark days... everyday... me...washed by the water- by His water... clean and new.