I once heard someone talk about being pulled out to sea in a riptide. See, this woman grew up on the Atlantic Coast, was used to swimming in the Atlantic, yet when she went to an island in the Pacific, she found the ocean to be different from what she expected. She didn’t see the riptide coming, nor did she know how to handle it when it caught her.

As she was speaking, I thought how much life is like that. We can think we know what’s going on. We can think we know the dangers and how to avoid them.

Yet often, like that riptide, danger lies in unexpected places. It sneaks up on us, grabs us, and drags us to places of surprising danger.

But just like that riptide, there are precautions we can take to avoid getting into trouble. 

Time spent with the Lord in Bible study and prayer are key. You can’t know right from wrong – and may not even recognize when you’ve gotten caught in the riptides of life – unless you are walking with the Lord.

Another gift that God gives us to keep us on track are other Christians. Everyone from pastors to Sunday school teachers to that family that always sits behind you in church are people who can help you recognize danger and keep you in safer waters. 

If you’re not part of a church, you don’t know what you’re missing. Hebrews 10:24-25 has something to say about this: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the day approaching.”

If you aren’t in church, what’s keeping you away? Sure, the church has problems – it’s made up of humans – but the blessings far outweigh the troubles. And if you are in a church, count your blessings… and consider how YOU can be the blessing to those around you.