The beach is my favorite place to be. I can feel God's presence in the crashing of waves, shining of the sun, and cool breezes blowing through my hair. God's amazing creations here remind me of many things, and I often find myself sitting on the beach contemplating the meaning of life and my purpose in it. Time almost seems to stop as I sit and look out at the beauty that surrounds me. I have never felt quite like I belong so much as I do when I am near the ocean. While visiting there this past spring, I thought of the many things we can learn from the beach. These are very important lessons that also relate to simplifying your life.
1. Slow down
We hustle and bustle through life, especially during the Christmas season, which just happens to be when I am writing this. We don't often take the time to stop and think about the most important things. The modern invention of various technologies plays a huge part in keeping us busy and distracted. When was the last time you put your phone away and intentionally silenced it so you could experience life without distraction? I do this occasionally, but I want to be much more intentional about doing this more often. Whether we like it or not, like goes by fast. Whether we are present in the moment or distracted, the world keeps spinning and changing. We have to make a choice to slow down and take time to be present in what is going on around us. Scrolling Facebook can wait. Reading the latest headlines can wait. Going to every get together can wait. Let's slow down and enjoy the ride.
2. Be grateful
The beach reminds us that we have so much to be grateful for. We are blessed with such beauty and awesomeness by our creator. We aren't starving or without clothing. We are blessed to have not only our needs met, but many of our wants met as well. The next time something doesn't go your way, try to remember all of the things that do go well for you. Be grateful you're not in a worse position than you are. We're so very blessed.
3. We're part of something bigger
When at the beach, I feel extremely small. I see the vast ocean reaching farther than the eye can see and the seashore that seems to stretch for miles and miles. I feel so small and insignificant, but not in a bad way. I am reminded that I am but one very tiny piece of God's creation. Yet, He died for ME. He loves ME unconditionally. He listens to ME. He is ALWAYS with ME. Every tiny piece of creation was made for a purpose. Every tiny piece of creation has meaning. Every tiny piece of creation works together according to God's plan. I am important, and I am loved by the Holy creator. <3
4. God is in control
From the crashing of waves to the small creatures that inhabit the coast, we see clearly that God is in control. He spoke the entire world into existence and continues to sustain it to this day. Without His guidance and control, the world would be in complete chaos. While at times it may feel that the world is indeed full of chaos, we know that without God's hand upon it, everything would fall apart in an instant. He looks after the sparrow, the human, and the crab. He works everything together for good according to His purpose. Would a human be able to create something quite so wonderful as the beautiful ocean, tiny grains of sand, and shells scattered along the shoreline that various creatures have left behind? When we look at the beauty and perfectness of the beach, we know that God is in control of it. He is in control of our lives as well. We can trust in Him, knowing that He will take care of us forever and for always.
5. Simple is Beautiful
Beautiful things don't have to be expensive, elite, or hard to obtain. Beauty can be found in the simplest of things - the foaming ocean waves, broken seashells that scatter the shore, and puffy clouds that emerge in the beautiful sky. The colors of the beach are also a simple, yet beautiful mixture of blues, grays, whites, and tans. The colors are calming and create a sense of peace and relaxation. Beauty shines in simplicity. Embrace it. Hold tightly to it. In the words of Leonardo da Vinci, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
The next time you're at the beach, remember the lessons it teaches and take time to reflect on just how important these are. Thanks so much for reading.
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