Wading Pools

           

     This may come as a great shock to many of you, but wading pools are not designed for adults.  Wading pools are for toddlers and young children.  They are colorful and shallow, a safe place for youngsters to splash around in and get wet.  Kids may get the idea that they are “swimming” or feel “big,” but they are still just in a wading pool.

     Wading pools are not for adults (unless, of course, their children or grandchildren are playing in them).  The reasons are obvious.  To begin with, there’s just not much room for an adult.  But more importantly, you can’t do the “cannonball” in wading pools, or play water polo.  You can’t even float on an air mattress or doggie paddle in them!  For those kinds of activities you have to have a larger pool and deeper water.  Sure, the dangers increase in the deeper pools, but so do the opportunities for fun. 

     Children are not content with wading pools very long.  Eventually, they are drawn to the deeper pools where there is more freedom and challenge ...  and fulfillment. 

     Unfortunately, there are a lot of “adult” Christians still content with splashing around in spiritual “wading pools”.  They feel safe and are satisfied to merely sit in the shallow water and splash around like children.  We expect the young Christians to get used to the “water” by playing in shallow water, but we know something is wrong if adult age Christians are still playing in “wading pools” like children.

     God never intended for his children to stay in the shallow water spiritually.  He expects every one of us to grow up and take the plunge into the deeper water.  To do that requires mature thinking and activity (Hebrews 5:13-6:3).

     Someone said once, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”  That is never truer than in regards to developing your spiritual thinking.  The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

                 Brothers, stop thinking like children.  In regard to

                 evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.

                                     1 Corinthians 14:20 (NIV)

     There are so many opportunities in the deeper waters.  There are blessings and joys that are indescribable.  There is strength and comfort and power available that those who are content to play in the “wading pools” just cannot imagine.

     Exercise your minds.  Read books that will develop and deepen your spiritual thinking.  Get into discussions that will challenge you to probe for answers.  Don’t just skip over the difficult passages in the Bible, explore them.  Get help if you need it, but make up your mind to learn all you can about God and his word.  Stop slashing around in the wading pools!  Dive into the deep water!  God will bless you for it.

                                     Joe Chesser

Fruitland Church of Christ

Jackson, MO