“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise,” – Ephesians 5:15

We’ve all been there haven’t we? I would guess that most of us have gone to the beach at some point in our lives. For some (maybe all), a day of fun in the sun turned into at least a few minutes of panic. Track with me on this one.

You leave the blanket, head out into the water and start jumping and playing in the waves. Before you know it, you look back to the beach and that panic sets in. “Either the crew I was with left, or I am totally not where I need to be right now”. Then you realize that NOTHING is familiar on the coastline. You have been pulled by the waves and current and didn’t even know it. The only thing you are sure of is that you would give anything to see a familiar face. You just want to get back to where you were before all of this happened. You feel helpless, foolish and a bit unsure how this happened in the first place.

Oh does this ever sound familiar. A few years ago, I thought I was cruising. Everything was fine and life was good. Or so I thought. I ignored the warnings of my “Life Guard” and in an instant, I was not where I needed to be. The amazing thing is how quickly it happened. I didn’t even see it coming. I thought everything was fine. But when I looked around, I was not where I needed to be. The good news is that I have learned much from that lesson. I am much more wise in all situations. I now know to set up boundaries in my life and stay between them. I can’t take my eye off of them, I must always remember to know my surroundings.

We must constantly be on guard against the enemy. If we are not careful, the waves and currents of this life will take us far from where we belong.