The Great Unknown

I used to be an avid blogger, but somewhere along the lines of being in college I lost that passion, that drive inside of me to write. But recently God has stirred up the desire in me to start new and to write my heart’s struggles and joys in order to breathe life into a world ravaged by death. So here I am, writing upon the waters.

My name is Bekah and I am 22 years old. I recently graduated Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida with a Bachelors of Science in Psychology. I am currently the Kids Minister at Life Church in Auburndale and I have been beyond blessed to be a part of this new church family. I grew up at Glad Tidings Church in Ocoee, Florida and that beautiful church will always be my home. There was a struggle inside me when the door opened for me at Life. I felt broken, lost and alone when I was faced with the decision but God continued to whisper greater things than I could ever imagine. He called me out upon the waters into the great unknown. It was and is still during this transitional time in my life that God is teaching me that no matter where He places me, He will keep my head above the waters. He is showing me that HE is sufficient. All of my fears, all of my doubts, and all my insecurities are nothing compared to the goodness of our Savior. Because of His goodness, His mercy and His love, I am made greater each day. Today, I choose to die for the cause of Christ. As my good friend Travis always says, I have a plan to lose it all.

I have been struggling with starting this blog because I had no idea what to name it. I have had other blogs, but they were for different seasons. I needed to start fresh, because this is the beginning of my new season and it’s been over a year since I last wrote anyways. After months of being stuck and not being able to think of a name, I sat down at my desk in my office and it just hit me. I was not even thinking about my blog, I just heard the words “Upon the Waters”, which immediately stirred in my Spirit and I just knew it was time for this new journey to begin. The title is from the song Oceans (Where my Feet May Fail) by Hillsong United. You can listen to it here.

“You call me out upon the waters, the great unknown where feet may fail. And there I find you in the mystery, in oceans deep my feet will stand.”

When I think of waters, I think of possibilities that are beyond my comprehension. It is a scary place to be when you are somewhere that you are comfortable and then God brings you out to the waters. The ocean is vast and when you stare into it, its endlessness is not only a beautiful sight by a scary realization when you think about the possibility of drowning. I have always been a decent swimmer, but I have always panicked at the thought of drowning. My brothers used to wrestle me constantly when I was little. When I say wrestle, I mean they thought they were professionals. My brothers are 6 and 9 years older than me and would wrestle me any chance they got.  One of their favorite locations to practice tormenting me was in the pool. I felt like I was going to die. I remember them taking me by the throat and smashing me into the water over and over again with my only breathes being between the smashed and as I came out of the water you hear me screaming off the top of my lungs for my mother to come rescue me and then quickly taking a deep breath before I went under the water once more. This happened ALL the time and it felt like I was going to drown. There is nothing more scary then feeling as if you can’t breathe and being unable to escape from the waters. That no matter how hard you push, how loud you scream you’re stuck in the same motion being shoved under the waters. Luckily, eventually my mother would come out extremely angry at the boys and would tell them to let me go and as I would be released I would rush out of the pool (only to come back in and taunt them again…because let’s face it, I was the little sister and I taunted them ALL the time. I definitely deserved the treatment I got.) The reason I bring this up is because sometimes I feel like in certain situations I am barely making it above the waters. I have always liked being able to know what is happening and so the great unknown is not exactly my happy place. I have been feeling like I am in cycle of being in the great unknown and as scary as it may seem I know that God has called me out upon the waters. When I feel like I am drowning, God is there holding me up high. He is my fortress and my ever present help when I am in need. I am on a journey of choosing to live by faith, of choosing to keep my eyes above the waves. You may feel like you are suffocating. You may feel like you are drowning or that the unknown is filled with fear. But I want to tell you that it is in the unknown, it is in the storms, it is through the waves that God is speaking. It is in the deepest waters that His grace overflows. If you take that leap of faith and swim into the deepest parts of the unknown, God will meet you there in that moment. You will never be alone. It is our faith that has the ability to move mountains and our faith is dead without action. My challenge is that we take action in our life. Despite the fears and uncertainties will you join me in going into the depths of the unknown and living Upon the Waters?

“And I will call upon Your name, and keep my eyes above the waves. When oceans rise my soul will rest in Your embrace. For I am Yours and You are mine. Your grace abounds in deepest waters. Your sovereign hand will be my guide. Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me. You've never failed and You won’t start now…”

To Be Continued….