Recently I swam in a beautiful, Olympic-sized pool. There were lots of designated lanes and people were enjoying themselves with various swimming techniques. I entered one of the lanes and began to swim as best I could. While having a good time, swimming laps at my own pace, the guy in the lane next to mine was moving at an extraordinary speed. By the time I made it from one end of the pool to the other, he had done it twice!
This situation caused my emotions to rise. First, envy had me thinking, “I wish I could swim that fast.” Then intimidation came along and made me think, “This guy is making me look so bad. I am embarrassed and do not belong here. Finally, irritation showed up and made me think, “I do not like him because he is not swimming like me. He should not be here.”
After the negative voices had their say, the Spirit of the Lord took over. The young man had stopped swimming and was now sitting at the edge of the pool. I swam over to him, pushed aside the jealousy, intimidation and irritation, and said to him, “Wow, you’re a fast swimmer. How do you move so fast in the water?” He looked at me, smiled and said, “I use flippers.” Then, he really blew my mind, handed them to me and said, “Here, do you want to try them?” Shocked, I said, “Sure!”
I put on the flippers and sped across the pool like the young man. As I made numerous laps in the pool, I reflected on the encounter and my range of emotions. It was very easy for me to be envious, intimidated, and irritated by something new. I did not understand it. It made me feel uncomfortable and it pushed me out of my comfort zone. But, thanks to the Holy Spirit, I put on humility and in return received the invitation to learn something new.
That is how life is: We must press through the negative emotions that come from our flesh and let the Lord lead us into new and unknown areas. God is able!
Your Pastor,
Dr. Sheron C. Patterson