Sometimes, no matter how obedient and faithful we are to God, life can still seem like a constant struggle against the current. The harder we fight against situations, the further we go under into the abyss. But the rule of staying alive if you get caught in a real life rip tide is to stay calm, don't struggle or fight against it, just relax and let it take you out and it will eventually bring you back in. This is total trust. But sadly, it's our human instinct to start stroking and kicking and getting out of breath by fighting the unforgiving force. Satan uses this tactic to wear us down and eventualy destroy us. When we beat ourselves up with our lack of knowledge and refusal to relax, we will only succeed in drowning ourselves. Satan knows how stubborn we are to the truth and will use it against us. If only we had known the facts beforehand, none of this would have happened. Any attempt to save ourselves will be futile. We need a life jacket, and His name is Jesus Christ! God teaches us that when we trust in Him no matter what kind of forces are going against us, He will never let us go down to the deep. God gave us our life jacket that keeps us afloat if we only learn how to relax and trust that He is going to bring us back to safety.

"[For it is He] Who rescued and saved us from such a perilous death, and He will still rescue and save us; in and on Him we have set our hope (our joyful and confident expectation) that He will again deliver us [from danger and destruction and draw us to Himself]." 2 Cor. 1:10 (Amplified)

Paul the apostle wrote this in his second letter to the Corinthians. He was trying to reach the unrepentant even though they had personaly attacked and accused him. For us today, the message is the same. God is a loving God, a forgiving God and even when we make mistakes, He is always faithful and just in saving us. He is always there to rescue us when we are floating out to sea without a life jacket. No matter how bad the situation seems at the time. if we just have a confident hope that He will deliver us, then we can put our head back and enjoy the ride.

"Indeed, we felt within ourselves that we had received the [very] sentence of death, but that was to keep us from trusting in and depending on ourselves instead of God Who raises the dead." 2 Cor. 1:9 (Amplified)

God lets us know that He is in control and not ourselves. For most people, this is the time they run to God and ask Him to help. It's in this kind of vulnerability that we realize we are nothing and can do nothing. This will bring even the biggest unbeliever to his knees and cry out to something or some One greater than himself. It's God's way of showing us that we are sinners in need of a Savior. If only we can recognize our human weaknesses and admit we are not in control, then He is always right there to take us in His arms and reassure us that He will never leave us in our desperate hour.

When I first became born again, God knew my stubborn nature in wanting to always do things my way. It was this kind of attitude that almost got me killed and nearly destroyed my family. When I turned to Christ as my Lord and Savior, I began from that time on to trust totally in Him and lead me. This one night He came to me in a dream and I will never forget it. I can still see it as if it really happened. Jesus had come to me with an out stretched hand. He never said a word, but gently invited me to come with Him. Without hesitation, I took it and He had total control over me. It was a feeling of overwhelming safety and love. We were traveling through the atmosphere together and being the stubborn person I was, I let go of His hand and wanted to do it on my own. Jesus will never force Himself on anyone so He obliged me and before I knew what was happening, I was spiraling out of control. I was flapping my arms as if they were wings and I had no idea what I was doing...that was obvious. I immediately became afraid because I had no control of myself. Jesus let me reach out to Him and He was right there ready to bring me back to order. Once I regained the comfort of His touch, it was smooth sailing from there on in.

The lesson; as long as I hung onto Jesus, I would never get caught in life's storms without a life jacket. He is my life line and will always keep my journey a safe one. That dream was obvious and easy to decipher. But, He got the message across loud and clear. I will never let go again!

Recently I was witnessing to someone who said all they wanted from life was to be happy. I told her that aside from accepting Christ as her personal Savior, happiness in the world would not and could not ever be obtained. For now, she is one of those people who still feels that she can ignore the warning signs and come out without a mark on her. Jesus is always with her with outstretched hand, but unless she reaches out to grab it, she will never find that peace and happiness that she so longs to have. Right now, she is content to believe that her life is all it will ever be. She remains a victim and accepts her destiny as the world rules her life. As for this person, I am just calling those things that aren't as though it were and claiming her salvation. It's not "if", it's "when" she realizes she needs a life jacket name Jesus Christ. God wants His children to thrive and survive but He will allow setbacks in order to teach us valuble lessons. It's our choice whether or not we want to succeed or be left behind. The next time you feel that small tug at your heart, don't just shrug it off, answer Jesus' call Who is just waiting to take your hand.

God often uses setbacks to move us forward.