Take a chance

As I look out across the park immediately behind my house to the river that runs by it, I notice that, depending on the day, the flow of that river varies. I’m sure it depends upon the amount of recent precipitation and other factors, but still, it’s interesting to note that despite its seemingly dynamic nature, that river is still the same. It could be three feet higher than average, it could look brown due to a large amount of soil erosion, the temperature could vary dramatically, and no matter what you throw in it (shoes, tires, pop cans, fishing lines), those properties do not change its original identity. It’s still called the Fox River despite all of these variables.
Equally intriguing is my variant desire to explore that river. I’ve lived in my house only a short while, all of which was this past winter; so the river has been much too cold for entry. However, there have been numerous times while gazing at it that I wonder what it’s like to get in, or I think about it’s depth at various places along its route and whether or not I could survive a fall into it. Mostly my daydreamed plans take place in warmer weather when the timing would be better to breach its banks and venture in. (I can see myself racing along in some fun vessel like a kayak!)
Yet, those daydream fantasies may never come to fruition. I’m not really the super-adventurous type. I don’t own a canoe or a kayak. In fact, chances are good my life would turn out just fine if I never get in that river. I could pretty much guarantee I’d never drown by merely staying within the friendly confines of my home (or at least, my yard). I could stay perfectly content simply watching the river run by, day after day. I could still notice all of the differing values of it and wonder safely from behind the window glass. My life would go on- safely and predictably.
But, would I be missing something? Deciding not to risk is still a risk. Would gambling a little of my personal safety be worth it? What adventures and untold discoveries would elude me by not venturing in? By taking part of something I’d always been too fearful to try, might I uncover talents or abilities previously hidden? Maybe there are other timid souls venturing out for the first time to whom I could relate. Or, maybe there would be someone who could ‘show me the ropes’. All of these questions could validate my possible willingness to throw caution to the wind and jump in the river.
Equally alluring is God’s offer to us to share in adventurous community with one another. He’s wired us for compatibility and inter-dependability. Each of us has a ‘grace gift’ (or more) that is meant to enrich the lives of others. We weren’t made for lone-living. God designed His people to do life together. When we allow ourselves to be vulnerable to others in love, to be held accountable for our commitment to each other, and to feel the support of shared experience and growth through faith, we step into the flow of real life- as it was intended to be. We don’t have to sacrifice our dreams either: God either makes those dreams a reality, or better yet, He replaces them with unimaginable ones. He knows our hearts.
Like the movie, God’s laid out for us a beautiful life- and a river runs through it. He leaves the choice to us, though: struggle along in our daily walk with the crutch of pride under one arm and fear under the other. Or, we can cease relying on our own ambulatory aids, wade in and move towards the sound of rushing water. It’s the call of the Creator to His created to do this together- to realize our potential as His Body: the Church.



“This faith in Jesus Christ not only saves us today, and makes our lives godly; it gives us hope for the future. We have assurance for the future because of God’s promises, and God cannot lie. We are born again “unto a living hope” (I Peter 1:3) because we have trusted the living Christ. We believers have eternal life now, but when Jesus Christ returns, we will enjoy eternal life in an even greater way.”
-Warren Wiersbe