An Empty Lake

being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

In California, on my grandparent's property, is a lake that my grandfather created by damming up a river. We have had so much fun there, swimming fishing, picnicking,and so on. There are many beautiful memories. One year the dam was opened and much of the lake was drained. It was interesting to explore the exposed lake bottom. We found lots of garbage that was hiding beneath the surface. On the other hand we found some cool treasures. Of course when you are a kid lots of things are considered treasures. I think my brother even found a pocket knife. I thought the fishing floats were cool.

Today, I am aware of how life is like that lake. There are the days when things are flowing nicely and all of life seems wonderful. Then there are the days of suffering when it feels like all the garbage of our lives is exposed. All the old issues that were hiding raise their ugly heads. I am finding today to be a bit like that. I see the picture of the drained lake over and over. My tendency is to go have coffee, chocolate or good food, anything to mask the pain. God is asking me to leave it exposed. I am to talk to him about the hard things and ask him to take care of them. I am to confess what needs to be confessed and then move on. He also wants to show me the treasures that were hiding. I am tempted to just hang out with the garbage. It is all so confrontational that all I can do is lean back in his love. I have opened my Bible and am declaring that God is who his word says he is. It really makes a difference when I do this.

On these days of exposure God does such amazing work in our lives. We are delivered from the hidden garbage and able to find wonderful treasures. Today, explore your life like an excited kid looking for treasures. Ask him to open your eyes so you can see the gifts. Don't judge these treasures like and adult. Look at them through the eyes of a child. God has a great day planned for you whether your lake is full or empty. Enjoy.