He Took the Waves

On Valentine's Day, I am remembering a couple that Ken & I watched in Costa Rica. Maybe we noticed couples more during our holiday because we were on an anniversary trip ourselves, or maybe it was because we had more time than usual to sit and people-watch. At any rate, we saw this vacationing pair while we were at the same beach they were.

They had no idea that they were giving us a marriage object lesson, those two. They were so engrossed in their efforts that they paid no mind to the dozens of surfers on (or in) the waves nor to the loungers under colorful umbrella sunshades on the hot sand nearby. The young man and woman were building a sand castle together.

Clearly, they were enjoying themselves. And why not? There they were in the bright sunshine and warm ocean breeze, contented and delighted in their project, together. Sometimes they'd stop their creative work and stand back to admire their progress so far, together.

They had chosen to build their creation at the edge of the wet sand, knowing that water was a necessary ingredient for their castle construction. They needed the "packing sand" - the damp, wave-washed particles for fashioning the walls, turrets and bridges of their castle.

But they also knew that the castle building site had to be far enough away from the incessant, destroying waves nearby. The tide was coming in, and they knew it. Previous knowledge of the seashore told them that the waves could wreck their creation. They began to shore up the tide side of their castle.

They worked together in this shoring up, their strengthening of the castle bulwarks. They gathered stones with great care, sometimes the one hunting and the other incorporating the stones into the ramparts; sometimes the other way around. They worked faster as the waves crept closer, laying in the stones and packing in wet sand around them, mortar-like.

Finally, a wave lap reached the castle wall facing the ocean. The couple upped their courage and determination. More waves reached farther, hungrily.

 

The husband, in front of the castle, cemented in the stones with the damp sand. Then he saw the approach of a wave bigger than the rest. He lay down on the sand, stretching out full-length and curving his arms around the edifice to take the wave. The water ran around him and gushed up along the side boundaries, but the castle itself was safe.

The wave receded and the couple went back to reinforcing their building. I kept watching them, and pondering their offering a marriage illustration right before my eyes.

 And here is where I should probably step in to say that at some point, every analogy breaks down. Still, on this day that is (supposed to be) all about love and relationships, I make the comparisons:
Isn't this so much like marriage? The couple works at the creation of their marriage using the knowledge and tools God gave them. It takes time, effort, creativity and togetherness. They complement each other. They sometimes stand back and admire their progress with unabashed delight.

But they have an enemy to reckon with. They live in the world, but aren't a part of it - the enemy tide is coming in and trying to destroy their marriage by waves that surge and recede. They use the shoring-up Armor of God together, in the ways that God has designed them to contribute. The husband leads in protection. And every time he steps in and faces evil to protect the vulnerable ones in his care, he is following the example of the One who laid down and "took the wave" for us.

On this Valentine's Day, I am grateful for Ken, the one who has teamed up with me to build our marriage, and for all the times he has laid down his will for the good of me and our castle.

But today, most of all, I am in awe of the Lover of my Soul. My heart cries out, "Thank You, Jesus, for laying down Your life and 'taking the wave' for me."

"What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul?
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
To bear the dreadful curse for my soul!"
                                                  - Anonymous

This Post's Quotable:

This Post's Childhood Memory:

I remember that every year there for awhile, when it was getting close to Valentine's Day, Dad bought Mom candy - a frilly bright pink or yellow heart-shaped box of chocolates. Mom was always so pleased with the gift from her lover, and she always shared the candy with the rest of us. After supper, she'd pass the box around the table and we each got to pore over the luscious-looking lot and pick out one chocolate for ourselves. My little brother Tim (Timmie, at the time), though, got to choose TWO pieces because it was his birthday. How lucky could one get, to be born right on Valentine's Day?