Waves

I've always been a fan of all things sunny and watery. Lakes, ponds, rivers, oceans -- I love them all. Probably has something to do with my dad working on the river and me partially growing up on a boat, but it could just be because I don't get to go to the beach but about once a year.

One particular Scripture, a piece of a favorite chapter of mine, kept coming to my head during this trip, probably because of the beauty of the ocean and because of the strong waves that crashed on the shore.

"But I am the Lord thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The Lord of hosts is his name." -- Isaiah 51:15

Standing out in the ocean on that first day and continually getting knocked over by the waves, I suddenly realized how powerful the waves are. When waves crash on the shore during hurricanes and floods, how scary that actually is. A wall of water that is about to crash over you is a bit unnerving, even when you're feet from the shore and you know you're safe.


Our God is a powerful God. He divided the sea, and the waves roared out His name.

I also took a run on the beach Sunday morning for the sake of running on the beach. Cross that off my bucket list, I guess. The first 1.5 miles, I ran by the beach on pavement, and then, just for fun, took off my shoes and carried them as I ran on the edge of the water, dodging sandcastles and seashells along the way. Because I was right on the edge of the water, the sand wasn't really an issue -- making sure broken seashells did not jack up my foot was. 


But I would wake up again at 6:20 a.m. to do it again. It was peaceful, warm, and wonderful -- and different. Especially the smells. Runners know the smells on their route, whether it be nasty ones like from a truck's exhaust or a dumpster or pleasant ones, like passing a restaurant or laundry drying. The air was salty, and, because some families were already playing in the sand, I could smell sunscreen, too. No chlorine, which is what I've been used to this summer. Salt, sea wind, and sunscreen. 


What a great vacation.