Drowning

We hosted a community camp in partnership with another local church a couple of years ago. One of the biggest areas of excitement for our campers was the large swimming pool. They were all talking excitedly about it as we pulled up and they obviously couldn't wait to hit the water (in fact, we scheduled 6 different swim times over 3 1/2 days for them.)

After the obligatory safety speech and brief swim test our campers were released to go full speed. What we witnessed next was an interesting phenomenon. In the course of seven minutes the lifeguard pulled three different swimmers out of the deep end of the pool. Each camper had passed their swim test, jumped off the diving board into the deep end of the pool, and subsequently swam like a rock. It didn't take long for us to narrow the list of "deep end" swimmers to very few.

While each of our campers was fine (thanks to the quick reaction of lifeguard & staff) I was left wondering how this could have happened so quickly. My only thought was that they had severely overestimated their ability to swim and ended up needing rescue once they were in over their heads.

I suppose that's not vastly different than moments in my own life when I have overestimated my own abilities (and I would wager that I'm not alone in this either.) How do we end up here? Sometimes it's a matter of personal pride that clouds our perspective. On other occasions perhaps it's a reflection of our undeveloped natural gifting-an ability to do something without refining the skills necessary to succeed. Much like swimming, I then find that I am in over my head and unable to catch my breath. Thank goodness I have had solid mentors and caring people who have rescued me and taught me how to survive.

Uncomfortable Fit

Have you ever been too big for your britches? 

In my adult life I have spent far too much time playing a game with fluctuating body weight. I let my good
eating and exercise habits go until I am uncomfortable then get disgusted with myself and switch back the other direction. It's been an up-and-down adventure for years. The turning point always comes when my waistline expands so much that it's extremely uncomfortable because I've literally become "too big for my britches." When that happens it becomes difficult to breathe, I feel incredibly unhealthy, and I make the people around me miserable as my own self-image suffers. The only way to make a change is to become humble enough to recognize the habits that led me to this point and discover the discipline to create positive life patterns that will decrease my waistline.

Of course the same effects are true when my pride gets out of control and I act like I'm "too big for my britches." I make it hard for people around me to breathe as I suck all the energy and positive momentum out of the room. I am emotionally, mentally, and spiritually unhealthy. My surging pride makes the people around me miserable as the focus becomes centered entirely on my own issues & ambitions. Sadly, it often takes a radical event to see the reality of prideful actions and the damage that's being caused. The remedy is very similar the physical one as well: humility that helps me to recognize the habits that have led me to this point and the discipline to create life patterns that will shift focus to God and others.

Neither of these realizations (and the process that follows) are enjoyable, but the derived benefit from lasting change is worth the effort.