I walked the beach this morning.
It’s sort of ironic to me that a few years ago I lived a block from the beach and never went but now that I live seven miles away, I’ve discovered the joy of beach walking.
Sometimes though, when I walk the beach, the sand is too hard and each step I take jars my back and rattles my teeth.
Sometimes the sand is too soft and the tide has pulled away leaving dunes that I struggle to climb up and over.
Sometimes the waves toss thousands of little shells on the sand that bite and dig at my feet.
Sometimes it is so hot and the sun is so blinding that I think I’ll pass out before I reach the half-way point.
And then sometimes there are days like today, when the sun is still waking up, hiding behind the clouds. The water and the sand are cool and it’s early enough that the air smells of salt spray and not suntan lotion. The waves are light and the only surfers are the scores of pelicans floating out into the ocean.
These are the days I cherish, not just the days when everything is perfect … but all the days, even the days when I struggle.
No matter where I am, God is there. Kathleen Norris writes in Amazing Grace that “Even when we feel most alone … God will find a way to let us know that he is with us in this place.”
He is with us when we struggle. He is with us when we weep … from sorrow or from joy.
He is with us.
