LIFE IN THE RIVER By Sally I. Kennedy

Enjoying a cup of coffee in the early morning quiet at our vacation condo, I was watching the activity of the river below. Due to a long drought, the water was way down. Rocks and boulders I'd never seen before were in full view. A small white piece of paper, or plastic, caught my eye. It was going 'round and 'round in a tiny area almost entirely closed off by small boulders. The whole time I watched, it never left the spot, just continued to spin around.

That night it rained cats and dogs. Next morning the river was noticeably higher. It sang a bit louder and ran a little faster. The white paper was no longer swirling in a circle. It was, instead, wedged up against a rock close to the river's edge. It was safely hugging the rock, just out of reach of the moving water. It seemed the
paper had no choice. It was stuck.

Sometimes I feel stuck in the river of life. Unlike the paper, however, I have a choice. A long time ago God made a choice that would bring people back to Him. Through Jesus we have a choice: accept His life sacrifice for us, get out of our own little whirlpool worlds and move downstream with Him, or stay stuck in our self centered world while we cling to some safe rock in the river.

I hope that daily I can remember to make the better choice, and keep moving with the current. Even if momentarily, or temporarily, I get caught in a holding pattern, I can choose to move out and onward with Him.