{"id":511,"date":"2011-11-28T06:25:23","date_gmt":"2011-11-28T06:25:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ultimatejoy.wordpress.com\/?p=511"},"modified":"2015-07-02T16:59:18","modified_gmt":"2015-07-02T23:59:18","slug":"the-strength-of-the-sea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/?p=511","title":{"rendered":"The Strength of the Sea"},"content":{"rendered":"

One joyous benefit of moving half-way cross country is all the new experiences just waiting to be tried. In the winding road that is my life, I\u2019ve learned I enjoy pushing the envelope, exploring new things, meeting new people and creating bold adventures. Even as I sit in front of this computer, I\u2019m giddy about filling a blank screen with something creative.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>So what better California experience could there be than driving to the ocean on a sunny 80 degree day?\u00a0 My husband, Richard, and I packed up our dog, Lily, and headed off to Laguna Beach. \u00a0The day would be Lily\u2019s first beach experience.<\/p>\n

Normally Lily doesn\u2019t shy away from the water.\u00a0 Back home she\u2019d jump into every puddle and just yesterday leapt and danced in the spray of the sprinkler system.\u00a0 Yet as we slowly waded into the surf it was quickly apparent Lily didn\u2019t understand the waves.\u00a0 She was very content to splash in the water, but as the small surf gently banged against her, fear and trepidation overcame the wonderment we thought she would have.\u00a0 Despite all my soothing words, Lily didn\u2019t want any part of the ocean as long as it included waves.<\/p>\n

And I wondered how many of us lose out on a great experience simply because we dismiss the soothing words of our God? When we land square at the feet of Jesus, His waves of love pick us back up each and every time we\u2019ve fallen. We thrive under His guidance, yet many of us, myself included, run back to counterfeit forms of peace.<\/p>\n

One reason I go to the ocean is to drink in the awesomeness, the hugeness, the strength of my God, who created it.\u00a0 Yet despite the sea\u2019s reminder, every hour of every day, I must do the difficult work of directing my mind, my heart and my soul back to the Ultimate Security.<\/p>\n

There are days, I freely admit, when I\u2019m impatient, my voice has a biting tone or my bed seems to provide more comfort than my God.\u00a0 Sometimes I fret about the clouds overhead and forget to dance in the puddles of the sea.\u00a0 Psalm 100:1 says, \u201cOn your feet now\u2014applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence.\u201d\u00a0 When the world carries too much stress, try the verse’s helpful suggestions:<\/p>\n

Stand <\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 It\u2019s okay to be afraid \u2013 to stand on fearful feet.\u00a0 You must first stand in order to walk, then run.<\/p>\n

Applaud God<\/strong> \u2013 Give God a standing ovation in both the extraordinary and the mundane.\u00a0 Gratitude will brighten any circumstance.<\/p>\n

Bring laughter<\/strong> \u2013 Laughter is indeed the best medicine\u2026one of the most potent stress-busters around.\u00a0 When tension circles, just smile and laugh.\u00a0 It will lighten any moment.<\/p>\n

Sing<\/strong> \u2013 It doesn\u2019t matter what your voice is like, bring happy, worship-filled songs into your life.\u00a0 Make your car, your shower, your home into God\u2019s cathedral.<\/p>\n

No matter how much life changes, God is always there urging you to lean on His strength \u2013 to let Him provide your security.\u00a0 So get on your feet and learn to nourish your soul by dancing in the tide of God\u2019s unconditional love.<\/p>\n

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One joyous benefit of moving half-way cross country is all the new experiences just waiting to be tried. In the winding road that is my life, I\u2019ve learned I enjoy pushing the envelope, exploring new things, meeting new people and creating bold adventures. Even as I sit in front of this computer, I\u2019m giddy about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,4,5],"tags":[6,13,48,18,19,23,26],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=511"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1267,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511\/revisions\/1267"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myrawells.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}