As furloughing missionaries we are always traveling! We recently stayed the night in a lovely hotel with an indoor swimming pool. The girls were so excited and couldn't wait to check in, change clothes and dive in. Only problem was, as soon as we headed into the pool area, the girls were immediately filled with fear and refused to get in. "It's too deep... It's too dark in here... Is it safe? Daddy, is it over our head?" They spent several fearful minutes sitting on the edge with only their feet dangling in the warm water. They finally agreed to get in if we'd hold them and show them how deep it was. At one point, Olivia was in my arms, in water that would only come to her shoulders. Yet, she refused to extend her foot and stand on her own. They finally relaxed and before long they were playing, leaving all their fears behind. When it was time to dry off and head back to the room Elizabeth commented, "I wish we had just jumped in, we wasted a lot of time."
I wonder how many of us will look back in our lives and regret that we didn't take the plunge sooner. Perhaps our life is a lot like that pool. We have anxieties and doubts. Our loving heavenly Father wants us to jump in and trust him but we refuse. We'd rather hang on to the edge of the pool, counting on our own strength to keep us afloat. I love Psalm 37:5, "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." Let us not get to the end of our lives and wish we had just jumped in and not wasted a lot of time! Take the plunge!
