By Rachel Dickerson.
Once on vacation I decided to try an underwater activity called Snuba, which is a little like SCUBA diving, only instead of wearing an oxygen tank on your back, the tank floats in a raft and supplies your air via a long tube. It turned out to be fun, but the beginning was difficult. I was warned during the training session that the first underwater breath could feel so unnatural it could cause you to panic. That’s exactly what happened. One breath of that canned air under the water sent me scrambling for the surface, ripping off my mask, gasping for a breath of “real” air.
Once I composed myself for a second try, I found I was being left behind by the rest of the group. Panic started to set in again. How was I going to do this? At that moment, I suddenly felt the Holy Spirit speak to me. It was as if he said, “Hey. I’m God under the ocean too.” From that point on, I was able to swim around, look at the fish and the coral reef and enjoy God’s underwater creation. I was so blessed by that little nudge from the Spirit.
This experience reminds me of a passage in the Psalms.
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your right hand will guide me.” Psalm 139:7-10
God had to remind me that, even though I was out of my comfort zone, I was not out of his grasp. He was still with me, still present, even though I felt alone.
I love that God never leaves us. I love that we can’t escape his presence, even if we wanted to. It is a constant in a world that is ever-changing. When my circumstances are less than ideal and I feel alone, the fact that God is always with me is a comfort to me.
Rachel works as a newspaper reporter and has been attending Grace Hills for one year. She and her husband, Jason, live in Centerton.