Low Tide

I Peter 1:6 -- "So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while." [NLT]

image: Kelly Babb Dalton

The familiar crunch of sand underneath my old sneakers put a smile on my face as we landed at the bottom of the cliff at Big Talbot Island. Having eaten more than a little bit of the stuff on the way down, I was thankful that my camera was tucked neatly away - and sand free - in the bottom of my back-pack. But as usual, I wasted no time pulling it out and whaling away on the shutter button. 

Our favorite time to go to Big Talbot is at low tide. Because that's when all the really cool stuff can be seen. 

As the Sand Pipers whip in and out of the slow rolling surf, we find Nudibranchs [pronounced new-duh-brank], snails, shrimp, horseshoe crabs, and of course, barnacles. Giant holes have been eaten away in the coquina "rocks" by roaring tides and sub-tropical storms - leaving all sorts of nooks and crannies in which to climb and discover treasures. 

It's a photographer's dream.

image: Kelly Babb Dalton

Florida at its very best can be experienced on the clay deposits and fallen live oak trees of unpopular beaches. In the sand we've seen racoon foot prints right next to worn down glass bottles from prohibition rum runs. Wrapped tightly around old tree trunks we've discovered giant tendrils of ships ropes and have even uncovered spent 20ml cartridges left over from WWII. There are so many unique things you can see when it's low tide. Treasures that you would never find when the tide is high and the landscape is nothing but wave after wave of dark foaming ocean. So many things to learn and discover that would otherwise require diving gear.

And that's why its our favorite time to hit the beach. 

Most beach-goers hit the shores when the surf is up and the foam rolls in underneath playful feet and boogie-boards. But I've always thought they don't know what they're really missing. They'll never know the brand new world awaiting discovery when the tide goes out.

image: Kelly Babb Dalton

While you and I know the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ - we are still faced with our own personal low tide moments. Some of them can seem to last forever - while others feel like simple bumps in the road. But the truth is: we can be shown things at low tide moments that we would never see when the surf is up and the sun beats down from high overhead. There are indeed times when it takes the water flowing out from underfoot for us to see things that need change, things that hide in dark corners - or things that, when cultivated properly, can bloom into wonderfully full and vibrant life. 

So the words in I Peter are very true.  We CAN be truly glad when we are faced with less the bountiful spiritual valleys as higher peeks surround us. We KNOW that we will be on the mountain top again, true. But we also know that God may be using the opportunity to show us some things we need to see. It might not be about getting to the top of the mountain again right now - or waiting until the next high tide rolls in. It might be about discovering what's at the bottom of the ocean floor.