Lessons from a minnow

I sit on a fallen log beside the creek allowing the sound of the water falling gently over the rocks to soothe and quiet my soul. The warmth of the sun warms me to the place where I need to shed my sweatshirt, but the cooling breeze keeps me from becoming too comfortable in my solitude. As I gaze contemplatively at the flowing water and listen to the chirping of the birds and insects in the woods, my eyes are drawn to a pool of water formed by the rocks in the creek bed. And there in that tiny pool, a little minnow swims. I watch as the minnow constantly moves with the water, struggling to swim against the current to stay in that little pool.

I can’t help but think to myself, “Why does he struggle so hard to stay in that pool? What is it about that particular spot that keeps him there? Why doesn’t he just let go and let the water carry him where it will – over that rock and into the next larger pool where there are more minnows swimming about against the current trying to stay in ‘their’ pool?”

And then I pause to wonder, “How many times am I like that little minnow? Do I swim against the flow of God’s ‘living water’ so that I can stay in my little pool of comfort? Do I resist the Spirit of God nudging me to move out of my comfort pool for unknown waters? If I let go, will God take me into a larger, unfamiliar pool with people who may or may not be my friends? Am I holding back on the blessings of newer, deeper pools because I am afraid to let go?”

I may not know what’s just over the rocks or further downstream, but this I do know – the One who created me, who placed me in the streams of my life, knows what is ahead. And not only does He know what is ahead, He’s been there before and prepared my way. All I need to do is stop fighting and let go!

-Lorraine Brandt, Wonder Club Director