Your LOVE is like the OCEAN.

Stop, wait, be still for just a moment. Do you feel that? Take a second close your eyes.. and feel the cool salty wind across your face. the simple, soft, yet rough feeling of sand between your toes. You hear the waves crash beside you just like music notes, the ocean has a beat, crash, crash, crash. One continual motion and the world is still moving- just as these waves keep crashing. You can almost taste the salt and you realize that this, this is your place where you truly connect with God. There is a serene place- a peaceful place where the sun beats down on you and you know that the still small but mighty voice wants to minister to you. Here is just a sample of my feelings from this weekend:

This weekend I took a beautiful trip to the Ocean.. Ocean City, Maryland to be exact. I was so sick of feeling dry and empty that I just needed to get away after some very stressful days. I knew that God had last talked to me boldly and clearly while I was at the beach and I longed for a place of peace. It got even more interesting when I decided to go alone, yes, alone. Me, myself, I, and Jesus on a road trip that lasted less than 48 hours. I would totally and am totally going alone somewhere, someday, soon!

Sunday Morning was the clincher for me. I got up for the sunrise at about 6 am where I walked the shore line and just prayed. Soon God started revealing big things to me about the Ocean and the way he relates to us through the ocean. It's beautiful and I want to share.
--> our sins our on the BOTTOM of the ocean floor. They are forgotten, God does not remember them! Any of them! It's so freeing to know that the one who created us loves us enough to remove them from us. Psalm 103:12 says: as far as the EAST is from the WEST so far he has REMOVED our transgressions from us.

-->the sand. The gritty stuff. Some days honestly, I love it, somedays I hate it. Gritty is good I have decided. God showed me this morning that the grit, the sand, is an exfoliant. God uses sand- he uses each of us, he exfoliates in and through us. Even though the exfoliating hurts at first because all the DRY, DIRTY, CRACKED, DEAD Cells are leaving your skin, so does Jesus to this to our hearts and Spirits. He allows the dirty, the dead, and the cracked to become soft and gentle, as though you have just gotten your hands exfoliated. I know that the way God has done this in me. This was very apparent to me yesterday while I was sitting across from someone that I know we have had our differences. And as our hearts truly began to connect, I realized that the dead and rough is gone and the gentle encourager has taken reign in my life. See, I want nothing in my life that is left unexfoliated. I want it all exfoliated and cleaned up by my lover, Jesus. Nothing is holding me back anymore from the awesome things he has for me. No more death, dirty, cracked, or dry places can or will reign in my life.

--> Waves- how cool are waves? You get to jump into them- you get to ride them- you get washed by them. They are pretty amazing. God- oh beautiful Jesus crashes waves over us! He crashes waves of LOVE JOY PEACE PATIENCE!! He loves to love us and wave us in these things! When I got back from the beach, some awesome friends of mine were leading worship and as I was reflecting on the notes, God touched my heart by just showing me that the sequence of waves is much like the sequence of notes- the sequence of music. Some go high, some low, but they all come out beautiful. Just as our lives- things wave in and some things crash against us hard, others crash against lightly, but it's always a process. And its a good one. So Papa, right now in Jesus name, I ask for waves of grace, or joy, or anything that these dear friends of mine need. I ask God that you would wave over them mightily so they would know you and feel you. AMEN.

Along with waves, I noticed that when I turned around to look back at my footprints, they were gone. See all those past mistakes I made, after the new wave comes- God has washed those things away. The footprints disappear.. the things are washed away. God washes over these things with his waves.

-->Bubbles, yes bubbles. On Sunday morning, I went for a walk on the shore. I just allowed the waves to crash over me (some sadly even crashed over my jeans- I hate wet jeans, for the record) and my feet. But I observed something-- when some of the waves came onto the sand and the wave departed some of the sand bubbled and cracked and made mini not much bigger than a bebe holes in the sand that bubbled. It was the coolest yet weirdest cracking noise I had ever heard. As soon as I started hearing the bubbles God revealed to me that that is what our Spirits do once God has healed something- after a wave, a big wave of his presence, his joy, his anything- our souls bubble. Our souls bubble through song, but it bubbles in our inner man and we feel it. Our Spirits respond to this wave and its always awesome. I love when things in my life bubble because I can get excited about them. I get excited about the little bubbles and the way God bubbles inside of me. You should hear this sometime!

--> When the waves departed, many of them left remnants. What are these remnants you ask? SEASHELLS. The ocean produces lovely things. Think for a moment about everything that the ocean possesses and even the things that we can visibly see out of it! Fish, shells, Sand dollars, Lobster, Dolphins.. so much more! It's lovely. God then spoke to me and showed me that whenever the ocean waves come forth in our lives, he always leaves a beautiful "ocean print" in our lives. When I turned around to walk back to my hotel, I saw the line on the sand where the last wave had settled. At this place was a line and it was visible. I know that whenever God works on me, he leaves a "print." These prints are so beautiful! The waves also left sea shells or for my representation- the things that he leaves in us. Some many times in my life instead of fear- he has replaced it with joy and peace. Instead of heaviness- he deposits peace. After waves come through our lives- those trials- those important things- he deposits new and exciting things in us (like seashells and prints). It's cool. Can you make a list of the cool things that God has deposited in you- do you see the print that he has made in you? Honestly, I know and understand that it can be so hard sometimes to see where the print is or where the good things are BUT I PROMISE YOU THAT THEY ARE THERE. Why you ask? Because God promised them!!!! SO COOL! 2 Cor 1:20 says... For as many as are the promises of God, in Him they are yes; therefore also through Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us. So cling to those promises, cling to those prints. He is working in and through you, I know because I hope in those things!

God deposits things in some pretty cool ways- He leaves these prints on our hearts- they are lovely! One sign that was on the beach said "please only leave your footprints". I long for this in my life- Jesus, please leave your footprints and whatever else you want to pour into me!

--> At work, I have put a sea shell. I noticed on my Sunday morning walk that I got overwhelmed and in awe of the awesome colors inside of the shell-- then I would flip the shell to the outside. It was not until today that I realized how much our society only looks at the outside, when truly truly the inside of us contain the beautiful jewels- the rich colors. I ended up picking up all the dirty and what I considered not so attractive shells to remind me that God looks at our inside- the beautiful jewels, the treasure <3> SON burn- Jesus- can you burn inside of us and give us a SON burn? One that takes the deepest parts of our hearts, souls, and minds? Please? Thank you.

So here are my beach rantings. I am so blessed to say that this is not the least of what God revealed to me this weekend. Jesus is awesome! I am excited to see how God continues to talk to me inside this context. Below is a song that God had play across my IPOD right before I left.. here is the chorus.. it has been humming in my mind for the past few days:

Your LOVE is like by Rick Pino
Your love is like the rain
Falling on my soul
It's covering every place
Making gardens grow
The sweetness overflows
Pouring from your lips
The kisses from above
Let the heavens drip
Let 'em drip down
Let 'em drip down

Pre-Chorus
Your love is like the ocean
I'm drowning in your presence
Your love is like the ocean
I'm drowning in your presence

Chorus
Getting lost in the gaze of your eyes
Getting lost in the warmth of your smile (2x)

Verse 2
Your love is like a room
Full of precious jewels
It takes my breath away
There's riches beyond words
When it's just me and you
I can't remember storms
All I can do
Is melt into your arms


This song became REAL to me on the beach- the warmth of him and his smile was with me.. IT was WONDERFUL!

All my love,
Allison