Lenten Reflection - Day 6: by Matthew Swope

READING: 1 Peter 3: 18-22

When I was a child, my grandparents would take my cousins and me to a wooded park in south central Pennsylvania. We would picnic, play games, and explore the park grounds. One of our favorite activities was the game that has become known as “Poohsticks” (due to A.A. Milne’s mentioning of it in The House at Pooh Corner). In this game, the participants stand on a bridge and simultaneously drop sticks on the upstream side. The player with the first stick to emerge from underneath the bridge wins.

Obviously, many factors contribute to a player’s victory including the timing of the drop, obstacles in the stream, and the physical properties of the stick. In reality, most of these factors are outside of the players’ control. Still, as kids, we would spend time carefully selecting the perfect stick and locating the optimal spot to make the drop so as to avoid rocks and other obstacles.

In many ways, our faith journeys are analogous to this childhood game. No matter how hard we try, we cannot be the “perfect sticks.” Nor can we always seem to locate the path of least resistance. The miracle is that God accepts us with all of our imperfections—our misshaped branches, our failed blossoms, and our splintered ends. God extends His loving hand to help us overcome the obstacles, and He reaches in the water to retrieve us from any traps. We might not know where the stream will lead, but we do know who made the stream.

When I decided to move to Florida a year and a half ago, I knew very few people in the area. I was leaving almost a thousand miles behind me an amazing collection of family and friends as well as a tremendously supportive faith community. I trusted that God would drop me in the right spot and lead me toward a fuller realization of His will. Although I am sure many of His reasons will not be known to me for a long time, I must trust that He will continue to lead me forward on my spiritual and personal journey. Thus far, I have only been pleasantly surprised.

Unlike the game of Poohsticks, there is no winner or loser in God’s eyes. Some of us may be farther downstream in our faith journeys, but by the waters of baptism and Christ’s death on the cross, God stills the rapids of our lives, quiets the waters of our hearts, and leads us toward our salvation.