EP 06 · My Lord, Holy
Maui — My Son Sat Still in the Waves
I asked him what he was thinking, out there in the surf. “Nothing,” he said — just the quiet, and thanks.
A Black Sand Beach, Maui
On a black sand beach in Maui, my son sat down on a rock at the water's edge and faced the sea. The waves came in one after another — broke, washed around him, ran back out — and he did not move. Not when the water climbed the rock. Not when the foam ran past his feet. He just sat there, still as the stone under him, while everything around him kept moving.
Later, I asked him what he had been thinking about, sitting out there. He said he wasn't thinking anything. He was just feeling the quiet of that moment — and thanking the Lord for giving us such beautiful scenery. Nothing to solve. Nothing to carry. Just the waves, the stillness, and gratitude.
"From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I." — Psalm 61:2 (KJV)
I have thought about that answer since. Most of us sit in the waves with our minds racing — but the Rock does not ask us to outrun the water. It asks us to sit still on what cannot be moved. If your heart feels overwhelmed today, this page is my prayer for you: may you find your rock, sit down on it, and let the waves pass — until all that is left in you is quiet, and thanks. My Lord, holy.
EP 05 · The Night Harbour — Peace Across the WaterSister series · Faith Through TravelThe Next Generation Sings — Sunday worship filmed from the back row of our church: young voices, one song, every Sunday night.Reader stories
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Tell us about your tripAll episodes
- EP 01Niagara Falls — The Water Never StopsStanding in the mist of the falls, feeling very small — and very kept.
- EP 02Hong Kong — The Ferry Still Crosses at 3amAwake and anxious at 3am, watching the harbour — and remembering who never sleeps.
- EP 03Highland Lakes Camp — Mercies Before BreakfastSunrise over the camp, before anyone had done a single thing to earn it.
- EP 04Cabo San Lucas — New Every MorningA sunrise over the Pacific in Cabo — and mercies that had arrived before I did.
- EP 05The Night Harbour — Peace Across the WaterA whole bay of lights, and still the night was quiet — because His peace does not depend on the place.
- EP 06Maui — My Son Sat Still in the WavesI asked him what he was thinking, out there in the surf. “Nothing,” he said — just the quiet, and thanks.