Fish Flop on Dry Ground

Why do some situations really hurt? Rejection, loss, judgment and sickness are all painful. Have you ever wondered why? What is it inside of us that causes us to reel against these experiences and do our best to stop the pain?

C.S. Lewis said that fish do not think of themselves as wet when they are in water because when they are there, they are in their element. Take them out of the water, out of their element, and they flop.

Maybe the reason we hurt so at times like these is because down deep inside we know (not with our brain but with our heart and soul) that we are out of our element. Maybe down deep we know that we were created for a garden not an untamed wilderness.

But how do we know? What has whispered to our deepest parts that there is a home for us that we will one day take to like a fish to water? The answer is not a "what" but a "who"!

The Apostle Paul said that Jesus has sent his Spirit of Sonship into us whereby we cry "Abba (Daddy) Father!" In other words, Jesus is already sharing his Son-Father relationship with us and is calling us to experience and know (with our heart, soul, mind and strength) the fullness of the embrace of God.

The whisper of the Including Spirit is wooing us, teaching us, calling us to give ourselves fully to Him and the Father and the Son and find our place in the original element - The Home Life of love, life, laughter, acceptance and so much more! Anything else flops.

And yes, this world will at times leave us flopping like a fish on the bank of a pond, but know that your pain is telling you who you are. If you were a reject, loser, condemned and a sicko you would take to it like a fish to water and it would feel warm and toasty.

Challenge: Next time you are in pain, listen to the Spirit's groaning in you telling you "This stinks! My Kingdom is coming and I am with you till the very end! I will NEVER leave you or forsake you!"