Clean Waves
O Lord God of hosts,
Who is mighty like You, O Lord?
Your faithfulness also surrounds You.
You rule the raging of the sea;
When its waves rise, You still them.
––Psalm 89:8-9, NKJV
Surfing is both a lifestyle and a sport. Here in Southern California, you can spot a surfer because he’ll be walking his dog on a cold winter morning in board shorts and slides. Surf fashion aside, the act of surfing is both simple (paddle, jump to feet, ride) and very complex. Few sports include more variables: tide; water temperature; current; swell size, speed, and frequency of sets; air temperature; wind; seafloor—reef, sand, sandbar; wave shape, size, and speed; and more I’m forgetting at the moment.
The complexity of surfing is one of its big appeals for me and many of my friends. Even with surf apps and cameras, until you are actually at the surf spot and looking at the water, you don’t know exactly what you’re going to get. Things can change by the moment. Early mornings are usually best because the wind is calm and the water is glassy, making for cleaner waves. In SoCal, winter storms send big, churning north swells down from the Aleutian Islands, making north-facing breaks best, and summer tropical systems off Mexico make south-facing breaks shine.
One thing is certain: you don’t want to get caught in the “washing machine” on a big day. That’s the white wash between the shore and where the waves are breaking. There were winter swells when I was first learning to surf when I got caught in the washing machine and could not get through it to the lineup. Exhausted and going nowhere as wave after wave pounded down on my board, I finally gave up, turned my board around, and road the next wave in. (Every surfer I know has gone through this humbling experience at least once.)
It’s the equivalent of getting caught in a “sin cycle” you can’t break out of—gambling on ballgames; returning to that one website that always trips you up; lying to co-workers to elevate your status, etc. It’s just a lose-lose proposition of running in place or running hard and going backwards.
What surfers look for on a big day are channels—breaks in the waves that run perpendicular to the shore. In other words, spots along the beach where the waves aren’t breaking—which allows for an easier paddle out and less chance of getting stuck in the washing machine. On a really big day I will sometimes paddle out a quarter mile away from my intended break just to avoid the washing machine.
Smooth paddle outs are what we all need as God’s men: healthy, positive habits and ways of going about our day that help us avoid the “washing machine” of turmoil and shame that Satan wants to bring. You don’t have to be a surfer to get this concept—we all understand the concept of dangerous waters and the importance of avoiding them.
There’s a famous surf point in north county San Diego called Swami’s that has a great reef that creates consistent waves year round. You can stand on the bluff above and look down as surfers negotiate the channels and look for the best spots and waves. It’s cool because you can see the swells rolling in way before the surfers on the water can spot them.
That’s how God views us: He can see the moves we make before we make them. Trust the Master who has an omniscient view of your life and world. When you do, He will point you to the clean channels and the best ways to paddle out to avoid the enemy’s “washing machine.”
Lord, I hate getting stuck in place with negative habits and toxic behaviors—break me out of the cycle and restore me to Yourself.