FINE LINE
It’s a fine line between passionate and crazy. Some people use words like “intense” or “obsessive” to describe the over the top types. Generally speaking, I like those type of people… Then again we all tend to be drawn to the folks with our same tendencies.
It’s Sunday morning as I tap the keypad. This will be the only few minutes I get today not going a hundred miles an hour trying to accomplish in one day what physically can’t be done. I’m sipping, well gulping, coffee as I make my list of supplies I’ll need for the day. It won’t matter. Something always comes up short or missing so I’ll make more than a couple trips to the hardware store.
It’s early and chilly outside. There’s a snapping cool breeze blowing off the Pacific, the kind that turns your cheeks cherry red in short order. It’s beautiful, captivating. It’s good to take the time to be in awe of God’s creation. Those waves are awesome and vicious.
There’s a lot of people that live by the edge of the ocean. It’s downright crowded with folks. But of all the people that live close to the salt water only a handful of them come to the beach early. But these aren’t sun bathers. This group of crazies aren’t sitting on the high tide beach in the shade of the Southern California cliffs.
These are the folks that the Beach Boys used to sing about. These are surfers.
It’s forty seven degrees right now… and these guys are surfing…
In the dead of summertime, when I’m desperately hot, I’ll wade into the ocean… slowly. The locals say it’s like bathwater. It still feels like freshly melted icebergs to me…
Crazy surfers on a chilly 47 degree morning.
As I watch this group of crazies I realize that it’s also a fine line between the best wave to choose.
Life is like that in almost every aspect of it; it’s a fine line between everything.
I didn’t eat but once till late yesterday. My guess is that when it came time to eat I crossed over that fine line of eating enough into gluttony… maybe not… only God knows.
I’m a workaholic… Got it honestly from my dad. The difference is he was doing it out of necessity. I tend to push hard, do too much, and I allow it to define me. At some point I cruise past the fine line of working to provide and begin to make it the priority… instead of honoring the One who provides it…
A lot of people with different bends and priorities have tossed the crazy word at me over the years. My guess is that they too have a crazy bend or bone too, just different, that’s all.
I think it brings God pleasure to see us do what it is that He gifted us to. The problem, of course, is when those gifts come to define us and dominate our lives.
Since that fine line can’t be found with our flesh it’s easy to miss… when we’re looking with this flesh.
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 4:07 am
Wow, Floyd! Food for thought. “I think it brings God pleasure to see us do what it is that He gifted us to. The problem, of course, is when those gifts come to define us and dominate our lives.” Wow! I was married to a true workaholic for 45 years. In all those years, we only took one vacation. He probably only missed work a handful (one hand) of times in all those years because of a death in the family or something like that. He went to work with a raging fever, broken (yet uncasted) leg, a back injury so bad the top half of his body went in the opposite direction of his lower half. When I think of all the sick time and vacation time he never used…it mind boggles me. Unfortunately, it did define him and it did dominate our lives. He didn’t even have a fine line. You see the line and that’s a good thing! Enjoy this Christmas season with your family, my friend.
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 4:09 am
You always speak truth, Floyd. As crazy and unnecessary as it is, I often let a clean house define me–to the detriment of family time, devotions, and rest. Thanks for the perspective adjustment.
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 6:22 am
Yes, Floyd, I have to agree that God is well pleased when we utilize the gifts He has given us, but there is that fine line we tend to cross, even when He is telling us “enough is enough.” At times, we simply need to stop, drop, and listen to Him, making sure He is still first in our lives.
Blessings, my friend!
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 10:53 am
Those fine lines. They play tricks with my eyes, moving and and shifting back and forth. Thanks for the reminder to not look for them with my flesh. Good stuff! “I think it brings God pleasure to see us do what it is that He gifted us to. The problem, of course, is when those gifts come to define us and dominate our lives.”
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 2:04 pm
Well, my friend, you had to go and meddle. i was just fine in my own little world of make believe. Like all was right in my working world but then you had to go ahead and play with my head. Not crossing that line is a tough call sometimes. I’m not a workaholic but do work too much sometimes. (How’s that for rationalization?) Thanks for the conviction. (I think).
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 4:39 pm
Floyd,
Your post reminded me of what Olympic runner Eric Liddell (Chariots of Fire movie) said about how God made him fast and he felt God’s pleasure when he ran. And you are wise to be aware of that fine line when it turns into something that is not healthy because we’re relying on it instead of God’s love to define us. Only by God’s grace can we discern the line and not step over it or to step back away from it when God shows us. Blessings and may God guide you and may you be open to His guidance 🙂
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 4:45 pm
I like the same line many others like. “I think it brings God pleasure to see us do what it is that He gifted us to. The problem, of course, is when those gifts come to define us and dominate our lives.” My thought is that we need to keep our attention fully on the Giver, not so much on His gift. Many of us do that–and you do, too, Floyd–but also many of us don’t do it consistently enough. That’s where the arrow turns to me, I’m afraid.
Monday, December 10, 2018 @ 5:38 pm
When things need to be done, it is time to call a person like Floyd, because you can trust it will be done if at all possible. Thanks Floyd for a view of the surf. i once tried this, but not in the winter. leaving this to the professionals was better for me. There is a time to work, and a time to rest. Do take the rest time if you have to make time for it. I think Diane’s husband and mine too, learned the hard way about abuse to the body just because there was work to do.
Tuesday, December 11, 2018 @ 3:46 pm
One thing aging has done for me is I don’t go 100 miles an hour, I don’t, well not all the time, take on more then I should. Recently I had give up a ministry I love, MOP, Mom Of Preschoolers. I had been ask to be a mentor Mom and love it but I missed so many meetings due to traveling with our full time ministry…well you know the rest. Ask anybody who knows me I hate to miss anything, thrive on people. Ace refreshes by coming apart and I refresh by coming together. Ace and I both will burn the candle at both ends until we burn out and I can speak from experiences. Our gifting is not as important to God as it is to us and believing that has helped me slow down. By the way, are you living in California now? You mention the ocean and there are no oceans in Az. if you want bathtub ocean water go to Papua New Guinea, perfect temp…blessings.
Tuesday, December 11, 2018 @ 7:37 pm
We humans are so good at perverting His blessings, aren’t we? But He keeps on blessing us! What a merciful Father we have! It’s a step in the right direction that you notice this tendency in yourself, Floyd. Blesssings!
Saturday, December 15, 2018 @ 9:07 am
LOVED this post, brother. We have no internet for a while, so it took me a long time to get here, but your posts are always worth waiting for. Seeing those surfers out there and hearing how cold it is makes me shiver. LOL! I know what you mean about pushing too hard and going too fast. God has had to teach me some hard lessons in that department, and I am still learning. I pray He blesses you and your family richly this Christmas season!