Summer is over and we are heading into Winter! Yikes! Surfing seems like the last thing on my  mind but, about 4 years ago, my youngst daughter wanted to learn to surf, so on our summer vacation, she took a lesson. She was young and quickly got the basics. Each year following she has surfed. This past winter, she saved her money to buy her own surfboard. You have to understand we live in Connecticut, about an hour and a half from the closest ocean, so surfing isn’t something she has easy access to.

This summer, with her new board in tow, we were off to the shore for two weeks. For one week the waves were almost perfect every day to surf. My daughter spent hours each day surfing with determination and pure joy. She was on cloud nine and filled with enthusiasm! The second week did not bring good surfing conditions. She was frustrated and even angry each day as she went out on the surf. She was relentless, but that did not change the conditions. The more she tried, the more frustrated she became. We told her she had to be patient, but she was not happy!

What did I learn from my surfer girl? I learned that you can’t go surfing at any time. You must wait for the right conditions. Some days the waves break too close together, other days the sea may be too gentle. Even if you have your board and are ready to go, you may have to wait. So this is how it is with life. We ask God for what we desire, then we must wait. If we get too anxious and impatient we may miss His answer. We get frustrated and angry. We must be patient. He always answers our request, it may not be exactly what we ask for but it is always exactly what we need. Often it is even better than we imagined!

Be patient like a surfer waiting to ride the next good wave. If you jump on any wave, your ride may not be exhilarating. It could be a dud and you have to paddle out again, starting all over, exerting more energy then if you just waited patiently for the right one. The one you can feel in your soul is the right one.

Psalm 37:7 “Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;”

With Love and Gratitude,

Anna