The waves crash against the shore and I feel the heels of my boots sink into the sand. The air is crisp and cold and filled with a mist of saltwater that covers my beard in tiny droplets. The mountains surround me on both sides...I feel them more than I see them...as thick fog masks their true heights. Seagulls fly overhead and I watch them soar out over the ocean and out of sight, into the darkness of the lowering clouds, into the storm that inches ever closer. The tides come and go, but never stop. The kiss of the wind against my rosy cheeks makes me wonder what splendor is before me that I cannot see. What glories are exposed just beyond the seeing capabilities of my eyes?
It's a nagging question that pulls at my heart. Is it fair to be surrounded by such beauty and yet still long for more? How can it be that I'm now standing within your incredible creation, points of amazing landscapes I've never seen before and may never see again...and yet, my soul is still not satisfied? How can this be? Why must my heart be so restless? Why must my thoughts be enveloped by the possibilities of what's to come? It's a beautiful mystery to me.
I close my eyes, and just beyond the call of the gulls and the crash of the waves, I hear Your whisper tickle my ears, "I go and make a place for you, I will come back and take you with Me. Then you may be where I am." (John 14:3, NLV).
A tear breaks the corner of my eye and I get lost in this promise. Lord, may I never be satisfied, I think to myself. May this place only be the beginning of what You reveal to us. May the great adventure of this life and all the beauty it holds only be the beginning, yes...just the beginning.
"For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come." (Hebrews 13:14, NLT)
