"Impossible" Friendship

Picture this.  You're in a sixteen foot kayak gliding across the mirrored surface of a crystal blue sea. The sun shines from a cloudless sky, gently warming your face and shoulders.  You take in a deep breath of invigorating ocean air and briefly shut your eyes, resting your paddle on the boat.  Are you relaxed?  Sounds great doesn't it?   Now imagine opening your eyes to see a seventeen foot shadow just under the surface.  A dorsal fin protrudes high in the air and it's heading straight for you, with alarming speed.
Suddenly a great white shark breaches the surface, rising up over you like a living mountain.  Massive Jaws unhinge, flashing rows of gleaming teeth.  What would you do.  I, like most people, would be scared to death, and rightly so.  

Recently I received an email detailing the true story of a fisherman who untangled a seventeen foot great white from a fishing net, saving her from certain death.  Now, every time that man takes his kayak out on the water the shark follows him.  They have developed a seemingly impossible friendship.    This shark comes to the surface, rolls on her back so the man can scratch her belly, and shows pleasure by flapping her fins happily in the water.  This shark knows he saved her life and she is grateful.  What amazes me even more is that, she recognizes him, and follows him where ever he goes. 

I just love it!!  It is so wonderful when love breaks down such notorious barriers and finds a way to express and appreciate someone who is so different, so opposite, so out of our realm of understanding.  This is what God does for us.  When this little planet was exposed to the plague of sin, God warned Adam and Eve to stay away from it.  But, curiosity got the best of them.  They dialogued with the devil and you know the rest of  the story.  They quickly succumbed to his trickery and fell prey to evil.  They were doomed to die, held fast in the clutches of sin.  Sin is an insidious disease.  It engulfs the whole body and separates us from God, our only source of life.  Because of sin, we lost all capacity to love, respect, and even desire the presence of our creator.  

God loved us so much, He came up with a plan.   He sent His Son,  Jesus, who gave His life to save ours.  His sacrifice bridged the gap between our worlds making an impossible friendship a reality.  He bound us to Himself with cords of love so strong, no one can break them.  We can of course choose to release ourselves from His grasp and reject His offer, but why would we?   Christ said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me."  (John 12:32)

Even a dumb fish can, recognize, appreciate and love it's rescuer.    Aren't we as smart as fish?

May we allow Christ to be lifted up in our lives today and experience the pure joy and peace that comes from an abiding relationship with Him.

Happy Easter everyone.

Bonnie Morsette ~ 4/10/09