I’m perched in the swing this afternoon, feet up, my head resting on a bird pattern cushion, swinging back and forth pretending I’m in a small sailboat, a Jeb Ewing work of art, beautifully handcrafted from Honduran mahogany, trimmed in exotic woods colored brown and ebony and cream and pink, the boat’s crisp bleached white sail gently rocking me along in an aqua blue sea. The sun is putting pink roses in my cheeks, tanning my arms. I hear the tintinnabulations of wind chimes hanging from the tiki huts on shore. The sea birds are arguing loudly over the small fish they have managed to bring from the sea to the shore. I’m almost asleep when the quibbling sea birds wake me and I realize I’m in the porch swing and a murder of crows is holding court close by. Well, it was blissfully peaceful while it lasted. I’ll see the ocean this summer with my grandchildren.

The ocean calls to us and speaks of God’s power and might. In both the New and Old Testaments the word “water” is used for salvation and eternal life. Psalms 89:9 says, “God rules over the surging sea and stills its waves when they mount up.” Jesus had power over the ocean. Scripture in Matthew, Chapter Eight, reads of Jesus stopping a raging storm’s wind and waves on the Sea of Galilee. He had authority over the wind and waves and calmed his disciples when he walked across the water in the midst of an another storm.

I see the ocean as deep and vast, limitless, qualities we can attribute to God’s love for us. Just as the ocean is always present, God stands by us steadfast and faithful. We can’t see the edges of the ocean but we can feel the boundless grace of God’s love washing over us through our faith and prayers, no edges, never ending, flowing always like the ocean waves.

The ocean is deep and wide, encompassing God’s power but God’s love is deeper than the ocean waters. God put the sandy shores as a boundary for the ocean but we have no boundaries on God’s love. God’s love is endless. His love is always with us even in the storms of the ocean waves. Bible scripture in Jeremiah 31:35 states, “This is what the Lord says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar — the Lord Almighty is his name.”

We all get splashed by the waves of life’s storms. We can’t avoid getting wet when trials and tribulations bring storm clouds to our horizons. But we can weather the storm with God’s grace and God’s help. He is powerful enough to bring a boat to guide us to shore and he is strong enough to hold our hands as the waves suck us out to sea. God is more powerful than the wind and the waves and will hold us up when we feel we’re sinking.

God tells us to “Be not afraid,” and to “Fear Not.” In John 16:33 we read, “These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” God knows when the storms gather, knows what we’re struggling with, is always watching over us. We may falter and struggle but we’ll grow during these trying times and our faith will deepen as we grasp for the hand of God. When the waves of life’s storm are pulling you down, reach for God’s hands, they are always outstretched.

“Looking out over the ocean you can see reflections of God.” — Catherine Pulsifer