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Beachfront Solitude
Summertime is the right time to soak your feet in sand and surf.
by Valerie Hancock

"At the beach, life is different. A day moves not from hour to hour but leaps from mood to moment. We go with the currents, plan around the tides, follow the sun."

— from How To Live at the Beach by Sandy Gingras

A couple of summers ago two friends and I took a vacation to a secluded island off the Gulf coast. Our days were simple: watch the waves roll in, walk on the beach, sit in the sun and listen to the seagulls. At night we gazed at the countless stars and listened to waves crashing on the shore. Our beach house was modest and void of luxuries; its charm was found solely in its location. We simply stepped out the back door and onto the sand with the ocean stretching endlessly before us. And that was worth more than any amenity the rental company could've offered.

The beach reminds me how little I need to be happy and enjoy life. It reminds me that doing nothing is an art form — one that Jesus encouraged us to take part in: "...'Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest a while'" (Mark 6:31).

To me an oceanfront beach is a picture of what our Creator is like — vast, powerful, calm, beautiful, warm and unpredictable. It's a piece of creation that shows me how small and insignificant I am and how huge and all encompassing God is. When life seems too complicated or I get too wrapped up in myself, the beach reminds me that true peace and rest are found only in my relationship with Christ: "Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30).

At the beach we're transported to a simpler way of life, where the distractions of our day-to-day lives are forgotten and we can simply rest and be. So, go to the beach before the summer ends. Simplicity isn't always simple to get, but at the beach it's right there waiting for you. Can't you hear the ocean waves? Can't you feel the gentle breeze?