I could think of no other place that I would rather be. I let the wind press upon my back, and the sun shine with full force into my face. Its warmth soothed my wet, salty skin, and I looked down again to the soggy sand beneath my feet. Fully clothed, I ran without hesitation into the cold, crashing waves. The brilliant blue water matched the sky’s hue, and every time a grey cloud passed by, the same stormy mood came upon the water. I felt like a kid again. It didn’t matter that every inch of me was dripping with saltwater, or that my heavy clothes would be clinging uncomfortably to my skin for the next hour or longer. I was free! I had miles of beach to run along for the rest of the afternoon. Afternoon was a short slice of time, but I treated it like a separate lifetime.

It was another world, filled with different thoughts and feelings, but just for a day. I let my mind and body savor the little moment of escape. Reality would soon greet me again, as it often had before. I wasn’t worried about completely losing my sense of reason, so the moments of insanity were to be treasured. I was nowhere, and I was everywhere. I drew in a deep breath of cold air. Its chilling refreshment melted into my lungs and invigorated me. I looked into the sky; I let my eyes scope the far-stretched beaches. I looked far into the ocean’s waters, to the horizon. Everything was so magnificent and so beautiful that I suddenly felt intimidated. Reality had returned.

The proud feeling of strength and power my surroundings had first inspired in me had worn off. I felt very small. I was not above this creation, but a part of this creation. Somehow this feeling of intimidation, of smallness and insignificance, gave me an even more amazing feeling than before, for I knew and loved my Creator, and it was only because He first loved me and brought me into His covenant.

Me, in covenant with the Creator of this vast universe? Everything around me that I
could touch, hear, smell, or see, was something that He had fashioned according to His own pleasure. Why should He, God of gods, have anything to do with a being like myself? I was like one of the grains of sand on the beach. I felt smaller than ever before, yet at the same time, I began to grasp an even deeper understanding of how great our Lord’s love is. The Creator and King is also our Father. The Word Incarnate humbled Himself to our own condition out of love for us. For us?

When we stop to marvel at His creation, we should marvel more at the Creator. When we see the beauty of the world, we should see a glimpse of the unfathomable beauty of our God. His beautiful world gives us joy, but only a taste of the greater joy of His gospel, His grace, and His beauty.

I looked down again upon my wet clothes. The sun was beating down on me, and the wind was strong but warmer. The beauty and goodness of the Lord was all around me. I could not escape it, nor did I wish to. This afternoon was not given to me as a moment of escape. It was given to me for the opportunity of bringing glory to His Name. With gladness, I will praise the Lord my God forever.

The heavens declare the glory of God;
and the firmament sheweth his handywork. ~Psalm 19:1