Windows to Life

Nothing causes me to think about the power of God like the ocean. 

Alive with energy, it remains wild and unpredictable.  Recently my family and I visited the Oregon coast.  It was my request that we go out at high tide, but I was not prepared for such violent waves, nor that it could pen us in and pull us down under its force. 

Our cabin was very near the shore and I wondered, what stops the waves from sweeping us out to the deep?   I know it is God who commands the sea to roll or stop.  He sets its boundaries so that it comes only this far and no further. 

Yet, there appeared to be only a small grassy bank keeping that massive Pacific in its place.  How can a few bushes, a rail fence, and a slight elevation stop the sea?  The slope seemed dwarfed and insignificant compared to the mass of water. 

Since it is God who created the world and holds it in place with His sustaining power, could He not also bring life from the dead?   And why would I be surprised that He would move a heavy stone from a tomb?  Yet, Jesus, in His risen body could walk through walls.  What reason would God have to remove the stone? 

Simply put, it was for us.  He invites us to "come and see," because He wants to be known. 

In order to get from one beach to another, there was a tunnel through the rock, a narrow passageway scattered with these peep holes on one end.  They were about 4 or 5 inches in diameter, quite small.  But if you placed your face right to them, a pocket of ocean could be seen. 

My pastor spoke just this morning of how God is far greater than our comprehension, but sometimes the scope through which we are looking has made Him out to be small.  I could not help but think of these peep holes in the rock.  . .

And of that hole in the tomb, a window into the wonder of what lies beyond.  It was for us that God rolled the stone away.  He wanted us to peer deeply into life, to witness the power of God, to see the evidence and believe. 

Everywhere I look I see fingerprints of God's handiwork.  Yet, nothing surpasses the cleansing forgiveness and relationship our risen Savior offers to us.  There are times when waves and wind seem personal and call me to their enchantment.  But never can the creation lift me to my soul's true purpose like Jesus, the giver of life.

In this season of blossoming trees, springing flowers, and tender gardens, I cannot help but wonder at those who do not believe.  What are their thoughts on a dormant winter coming to life, of seeds set in the ground where silent and unseen their resurrection soon becomes evident? 

Surely, Jesus is God and is risen from the dead, just as He said it would happen.  He earnestly calls us to Himself.  May He give each of us eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to respond.

Have a blessed Easter!