I love a beach destination where I can get filled with the sights and sounds of sweet surf and sand plus ice cream, spend some time with a swimming singing sister, AND then – with all of that – a sermon too, on the packed 9am boardwalk pavilion, Ocean Grove blessings. And yes, I loved the one song of praise I heard and got to sing which perked my ears: the refrain: “I want to follow Jesus” is “No turning back, no turning back”. I heard that nearly 10 years ago, a scripture in a different song, but the same meaning, no turning back when you chose to follow the Way of the Lord over the way of the world.

Complete journey for a Sunday for sure, and only 1 hour away. Oh the surf and smells of marigolds and sights of summer. What is something that one can’t get enough of? Key lime ice cream for me – human me – and the Word preached with truth… What a blessing to combine that here. A respite of refreshment. 

The Word, Jesus’s fleshed out fulfilment of God’s Plan and Love, is the Way of Wondrous Work.

The Word is more powerful than the world and above both the unfair and super duper good stuff we go through too.  All good things are from God, and God is above it all. His Ways are above our ways. 

We listened to our guest sermonist who spoke of trials and tribulations of life – of going through it and not stopping, keep going. He spoke of how easy faith is in the good times, but we need our faith, God has provided our faith, for the valleys, the down times. Amen to that and more on his sermon later.

We parked our chairs and umbrellas just near the edge of the tide, not far from where I saw the baptisms the previous Sunday and asked to be dunked myself. Immersion is the blessing of knowing that you will rise from being under water. These waves were more fierce this day, no problem for my swimming fish friend, but they scared me… I’m not from a beach understanding place – I’m getting better. The water was invitingly warm at 71 (hey that’s perfect here) – and clear with no critters or anything this day. There were a fraction of folks from just one week ago, people back to school and from being too busy, but I’m savoring summer and stretching it. I’m going to be going to the beach all September and October surely. 

We walked up to the sounds of the boardwalk pavilion church. We didn’t get to the auditorium church service but snuck in later at noon for a glimpse and photos of the pipe organ while they were cleaning up from the later service. It’s a marvelous place with history, hope, and how the Word revived the people and still does. The listener to the Word is where the work takes place, how you ingest it and how it helps and hopes you. The Word doesn’t return to God’s ear void, the Word Works. 

The sermon of the boardwalk included the agreement that life isn’t fair, but God is with you in the worst, so keep going anyway. “FOR I KNOW THE PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU”, declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11 – and this is NOT just about the blessings of the world, like celebrating dinner or the leftovers now in the fridge or the fireworks amazing surprise when I stepped out of the restaurant, how ever amazing these SHORT-TERM blessings are, they are like melting ice cream that must be enjoyed and is gone – as like the end of this summer seasonal blessings – life is fleeting and short… The Word here is FOREVER- and EVER MORE powerful… Jeremiah hears from the Lord that IN WHOLE, the blessings will outweigh the angst.

The Old Testament story of Joseph was also shared in the boardwalk sermon, Joseph’s brothers mistreated him, he was left for dead in a well, he was rescued only to be a slave, he was imprisoned for false accusation, and forgotten even when the people said they would help… well, years later, oh, Joseph’s God-given gift of dream interpretation got him sprung from prison to the palace and most importantly to a position where he could both bless his brothers and countryfolk with grain (which he had Pharaoh stockpile) in a famine AND BLESS THEM BY FORGIVING THEM too. Joseph saves the situation and God’s 12 son’s of Jacob, tribes of Israel, are fortified. (see Genesis 37, 39-47)

God will take up our plight too and we surely can rise above what drags us down. Even able to forgive: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.” Joseph told his brothers. We must keep that long view too! (And our sermonist shared a riveting personal story too of this Joseph-like recovery from the Lord in his life. AMAZING)

The WORD is ABOVE the WAVES of the WORLD. The good and bad and even how we interpret it… Just one more thought about key lime pie ice cream (and I had toasted coconut with chocolate bits too) – one resting gentleman behind the counter said it wasn’t his favorite, the tartness, but oh in that moment it hit my taste buds just right. That’s a miniature version of how we humanly might hear the Word – We might not hear everything or it hit us right just then but there are certain times when it hits us perfect – we hear what we need to hear and it’s not just about our palate, in tune, but about God’s power to help us hear. May we all hear Him in the right season of our lives.

Thanks Lord for a tasty weekend and of a whetted appetite… Always, we want more of You.

Amen