The Kiddie Pool

It’s the last day of Summer and I’ve been reflecting on our season. For many people it has been one HOT summer. Due to utility workers digging up our back yard, we were not able to set up our metal-frame pool to have relief from the heat. In desperation, I thought it might be beneficial to get a kiddie pool to a least be able to get my feet wet and find a little bit of enjoyment. I decided it wouldn’t be worth it and instead we would go to the creek or to our friend’s house who has a pool. There is something about being fully immersed that is so much more satisfying than what a kiddie pool can offer.

Although I remember what it was like to be a child in the kiddie pool in my grandparent’s back yard, it no longer suits as an adult. The inspiration I had is how our faith can be like this comparison. When we are young, our walk may be shallow, but it is sufficient as we are still small in our understanding. If we stay in the kiddie pool of faith through adulthood, then we are hindering the development of our Christian walk. It just gets our toes wet, so to speak, and does little to give relief in the heat of life’s hardships.

“When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with prefect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” 1 Corinthians 13: 11 & 12 NLT

If you are puzzling things together in the reflection of a kiddie pool, then your scope is narrow and the water of this small container can get murky. As the messiness of life falls into the pool, it becomes a distraction to the things on which you should be focusing. Were that same sediment to be dispersed into a large, deep pool, it would fall away and allow you to take in the bigger picture. Furthermore, a kiddie pool would have brought little relief from the intensity of this summer’s heat. In fact, it would have warmed the water quickly and made it hardly different than the surrounding air. This is how some can say they are in the faith and barely be discernable from the world around them.

Deep waters can offer relief and would take much more to alter the temperature. I don’t know about you, but I love the feeling of swimming. In deep water you can totally submerge yourself and engage your whole body in the activity. Whether you’re propelling yourself forward, doing rolls and flips in the weightlessness of the water around you, or just allowing it to lift you up as you float, swimming in a large pool or body of water is thrilling. It also brings greater relief from the heat, just as a deep faith can move you and relieve the heat of life. When feeling the heat of life in our relationships, in the stress of trying to live rightly, or in the consequences of sin, going deeper in your faith produces the fruit of the Spirit. We know that learning to swim can be a struggle and, even when you know how, can at times be taxing. One must practice with perseverance to develop endurance to keep yourself in shape. You must discipline yourself for your training even as the strain tells you to give up. This will make you strong, to not only tread water for yourself but to help others. Like a lifeguard on the beach watches to make sure someone is not overcome, your training can benefit a struggling brother or sister in Christ.

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.” Hebrews 12: 11& 12 NIV

To be sure, there are many in the church who stay to their shallow kiddie pools of faith. Some look at the deep end and think “That is just too much for me.” We think of the story of Peter stepping out of the boat to walk to Jesus on the water only to sink into the waves. We think of him lacking the faith to sustain himself and judge him for that. The more heartbreaking part of this story is that there were 11 other men in the boat not willing to even try. So was it safer to stay in the boat, or for one to stay in their kiddie pool? Probably, but that is not where deeper faith is found. Peter was the only one to know what it felt like to walk to Jesus, and though we may see it as a shortcoming to not be persistent, his experience was forever altered. Even though he began to sink like a stone in the waves, Jesus said, “on this rock I will build my church.” (Matthew 16:18)

Don’t settle for the kiddie pool. Don’t stay in the boat. Dive into the deep end of faith and be fully immersed.