Have you ever considered the meaning of eternity?
One Wave in an Infinte Series... - Photo courtesy of Anton Repponen and http://unsplash.com
Ask anyone...
They will tell you that Eternity is a very long time. But can they tell you how long it is? Will they give you a real appreciation for forever? Let me try my hand at the task.
First, think about all of the oceans in the entire world.
Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic, Indian, and so forth. If you've ever sailed the seven seas, you know that our planet is mostly covered with water.
How long has the earth existed?
Your mileage may vary. Most think it has been around far longer, but let’s (for the sake of argument) say about 13,000 years.
Now consider every ride-able wave that has ever broken...
Every wave that has ever broken on every reef and shore on every coast and island in the entire world.
Check out each one.
Line up and ride each wave, then rewind the tape and ride that wave again. Rinse and repeat until you get the hang of it, ‘till you get each wave "just right."
You no doubt have plenty of other things to do...
Things that are perhaps as fun and interesting and necessary - so, limit yourself to working on no more than two or three waves a day. Wouldn’t want to get bored, or burn out!
Ride each wave again...
Ride each wave again - then again - from a different starting point, trying every variation of style you can think of. Ride them again on different boards, on a kayak, and then bodysurf the best ones.
Phone a friend...
Go back and re-ride your favorite waves again, as often as you like. Take some friends with you and share the joy with them.
Take A Friend With You... - Photo courtesy of delfi de la Rua and http://unsplash.com
Are you done yet?
You haven’t begun to fill in
even the first line
of the first page
of eternity!
More surfing posts:
It's Here! Come Ride My Beautiful Magic Carpet
The First Wave
Eternity: A Mind-Numbingly Powerful Perspective
Making The Drop (A Poem of Sorts)
The Ocean; God's Finest Invention?
Paddling Out -- The Story
Colorful Art from a Personal Perspective; Introducing "Paddling Out"
The Humorous Truth; Willpower and Cold Water
Why Do Jerks Seem To Get the Best Waves?
Do you like to surf? Did you enjoy this post?
Follow me, I'm creatr. Phone a friend. Bring along a whale or two... ;) Surf's up!
This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
John 17:3
Amen! Thanks for sharing that excellent scripture. :)
i was taught a different metaphor for eternity, when i was a small child but it was to describe how long i would be in hell, grinding my teeth from the pain, screaming unceasingly, dissolving in fire, over and over and over again.
Greetings! Thank you for your substantive comment here. I'm so glad to "meet" you, @lifeworship.
Simultaneously, I'm appalled to hear of what you were taught as a child. If you check out my writing, you'll see that I am a Christian who follows the scriptures. The very destructive doctrine of eternal, conscious torment of the damned is a hideous aberration that is not biblical, but was introduced later in history.
The one true living God, most widely known as Jesus Christ, is not a sadistic torturer. There is no place in the New Heavens and New Earth for a perpetual hell. God is merciful, and will simply punish and destroy those who do not come to know and enjoy His forgiveness.
The far better news, a.k.a. the "gospel" or good news, of course, is that there is still an open invitation to all men to come and find forgiveness, freely given, and to be welcomed into an authentic eternity. Scripture describes it thusly:
I'm so glad that you've raised this issue, because it reminds me that I want to write some posts on the topic.
Please come back to my blog, early and often!
only some people believe in fear as a motivator in the vein of "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6. i think they believed that a child frightened into heaven, as though the devil were snapping at his heels, is better than the destruction of the alternatives.
Ah, I suppose that might be true in the final analysis... and I hope that insight at least allows you to have some compassion for your folks...
I look back with sorrow at the mistakes I made raising my own children... I have tried very hard to encourage young parents not to abandon firmness, but to always accompany it with profuse expressions of love.
Romans 13:10
i think it is the difference between, beating them to make them harden up and teaching them the self defense, of all kinds, to allow them to be resilient. i see what my parents did right but i'm sure to do differently myself.