Deep Sea Survivor
How many
professional games have you been to and witnessed the exorbitantly long concession
stand lines? Have you ever stood in that line? At any point, did you feel
sympathy for the individual behind the counter?
I never
considered them either until the Thursday I agreed to volunteer at a NFL
concession stand. With over 50 thousand guests, free hot dog coupons,
understaffed concession stands, disgruntled workers, and new people on the
registers - it was a Molotov cocktail anticipating ignition.
Philippians
4:12-13 New Living Translation (NLT)
12 I know how
to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of
living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with
plenty or little. 13 For I can do everything through Christ,[a] who gives me
strength.
The Apostle
Paul writes these motivational verses in prison, a place of great physical
distress. I can imagine him sitting on a few strands of coarse hay that have
flattened from body weight. The air is uncomfortably cold and rank with a
stench of death. Three dark stonewalls stand menacingly from floor to ceiling
and a solid gate completes the room. Chains constrict him but there is enough
slack for Paul to write. He could complain about the walls or consider that the
room has an exit.
The pressure
of this intense circumstance and the possibility of death are daunting. With
just enough light and strength, Paul writes how to live with joy.
His mind is
strong and his body has endured a lot, but neither of these things can take
total credit for Paul’s survival. Paul eloquently says that his survival is solely
based on his internal strength provided by God. It is in his blood. Let me
explain…
There are few
guarantees in life, however I can confidently promise good days and bad days. Your
ability to look back at your bad days is proof you have - you can - and you
will survive again.
The bad days
contain Pressure Points. In moments of intense pressure – your body/mind will
point out a few things. You will either sustain or suffer. Positioning yourself
in prayer and pointing to God will help you endure.
Take a moment and consider the massive sea creatures that
launch themselves high above the water’s surface and then dive thousands of
feet deep. There is something unique that allows them to withstand the bone
crushing pressure of those extreme depths.
1. Whales
come to the waters surface to take in air and expend air through their
blowholes. As you experience your up days – that is the time to take in as much
of God’s presence, guidance, and peace. Just because you are in a good place
does not negate the fact that you need to stay in contact with the God that got
you there. Pray, worship, praise, and purpose time for God regularly.
2. As
whales dive deep, their bones should break from the pressure. Instead, they
bend. When you are in pressure places learn to be flexible. Staying rigid will
only lengthen the moment and cause unnecessary strain.
3. At the
lowest points of a whale’s deep dive, their lungs collapse. The whales rely on
enhanced oxygen stores in their blood and muscle. It is at your lowest,
darkest, and intense moment that you must release control and rely on what’s in
you. Paul, describing how he survives his weak moments quotes God, “My power
works best in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT).Your strength to survive is
already in you!
The same
blood that fell from Jesus as He was painfully whipped, nailed to the cross,
and stabbed in the side is the same blood that provides healing for you today. That same blood is coursing
through your veins right now. They expected Jesus to die and stay in the grave – but the
blood wouldn’t let Him do it. You have what you need. Generations have shed
blood for you to be where you are today. You will survive because you come from
a line of survivors, overcomers, and achievers.
Lastly, when
the whale darts back up after being at great depths, it occasionally breaches
the water’s surface. There are several explanations as to why it breaches the
surface. My favorite is that after breaking the surface the immense animal
crashes back abruptly. Some marine biologists suggest that this giant gesture
is to remove the dead stuff that was attached to the whale. When you emerge
from your depths and explode from your past let that dead stuff fall off when
you land on top.
Be
encouraged! Your down days aren’t forever and what you need to survive is
already in you! (2 Corinthians 4:9)
By the way, I survived the concession stand and will be back. The reward is worth the effort!
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