Sunday January 7 2012:

A Parable for Weekend reading:

Smooth Stones:

A. Paget

It was my second visit to French Beach. The first time I was so impressed by the awesome power and beauty of the waves crashing against the rocky shoreline, I wanted to share the experience with my best friend, my husband. 

To give you a picture of French Beach, you need to know this beach is not a white sandy beach  like most resorts boast of rather, it is a shoreline covered with thousands of stones, driftwood and  huge logs that have been swept onto the shore.  It is a “rustic” beach, to say the least.

As I sat on the shoreline, writing in my journal, I noticed how perfectly smooth most of the stones on the beach were; shaped by being carried to and fro by the power of the surging water. It was intriguing, almost hypnotic to sit and listen to the regulated sounds of the stones being swept back and forth as they bumped into each other.   The sound of the rocks as the waves ebbed and flowed, was like the gentle pitter-patter of rain against a window.

 I thought of how blessed I was to be able to enjoy this magnificent part of creation. As I started to collect a few of the glossiest stones, I realized how perfectly round and smooth they were and then I discovered why. For all of their existence, the water had been allowed to wash over them, wearing away the rough edges as they were swept back and forth colliding with each other and into the driftwood and other obstacles that were in the way.  While I was enjoying this insight and listening to the melody, it was as if  the stones were joyfully permitting this tumbling action. To me, it sounded like a cadence of beautiful music. 

I knew it would have taken  days, weeks and even years of sanding, scraping and polishing to make a beautiful creation like that. The sun’s reflection from the perfectly rounded stones was indescribable. They shone like gold and silver and all the colors were visible: greens, blues, pinks, and shades of gray and coal black. As I picked up a few and cradled them in my hands I was amazed at the smoothness.  They felt like silk, and even up close they were  magnificent. 

As I looked off to the side, there were other stones that hadn’t felt the impact of the moving water. I noticed they were rough with sharp edges and unattractive debris adhering to the sides. I felt almost sympathetic towards the stones that were just left to lie without being disturbed because they were not beautiful like the ones who were being tossed around in the tempest and turmoil of the waves.

Isn’t the same thing true about us? Without the pain of feeling the crash of collision or the interference of  unexpected obstacles, we remain unfinished, with rough edges, misshapen and even unattractive. A life that has never experienced rough waters, sometimes finds it difficult to identify with hurting lives or to reflect the beautiful love and acceptance of Jesus Christ the forgiver and healer of every hurt and affliction.

Then I thought how wonderful it would be if we were a little more like those stones and  allowed the Lord to refine us and remove the ugly bumps and notches that interfere with the beauty our Creator intended for us to display. Not necessarily an outward difference but an inner beauty reflected to those around us.  I realized, by letting the Holy Spirit wash over us, we could become as perfect as the stones on the beach. You see; the stones didn’t resist but just allowed the water to wash over them and that’s what the Lord wants to do for us if we let Him. He wants to wash us and fill us with the Living water that only He can supply.

We need the lessons of the tempest, the turmoil of the waves and the turbulence of the water to smooth and refine us to be the beautiful creation that God can use to reflect his love.  It is not always  easy to let God have His way but I pray that I  will remember the lesson I learned in the analogy from the stones on French Beach. Maybe, in some small way, you will realize that letting God have His way in your life is the secret to becoming a more beautiful creation.

1st Peter 2:5 “And now God is building you, as living stones, into His spiritual temple.”