Tuesday With Teri

          “A dolphin!, my husband yelled from the back of our boat. I rushed to where he stood and looked quickly the direction he pointed….no dolphin.   I could see only the concentric rings of rippling water marking a place where something had no doubt surfaced.  I scanned the area, squinted into the sun reflecting off the water, and tried my hardest to see the dolphin.  “Over there!” , the husband now bellowed as I scurried to his side of the boat and followed his pointed finger…again only ripples and waves did I see.  I really, really, wanted to see the dolphin!  I stared into the swift moving current for a  long time.  I was drawn to any disturbance in the water, certain I almost caught a glimpse of the dolphin.

          This brought back a memory from when I was a little girl.  The details, of course, are not clear, so I will no doubt embellish the story a bit…but I do recall being in the Seattle Washington area and visiting a place where it was possible to see whales at times.  My family was there along with and aunt, uncle and my cousins.  I remember my cousin and I trying hard to see a whale…I really, really wanted to see one.  Every white capped wave, every shimmer of sun off the ocean surface, seemed like a promise of a whale sighting…to the point that I convinced myself I had seen, well, almost seen, a whale.  That is when I uttered the memorable line, “I ALMOST SAW A WHALE!”  Yep, the adults thought it funny…my cousin and I felt we had succeeded in our effort to spot a whale.

          Dolphin spotting this day felt much the same.  The hubster kept seeing the elusive dolphin and I kept feeling like I was only “almost seeing” one.  I thought about how in life, it is easy to miss seeing the important things God has for us, lessons, blessings, evidences of Him and reminders of His care for us.   Am I the one who only sees the “rings or ripples”, the one who is a bit late to recognize something, or too distracted to take the time to really look?  Do I look everywhere but where God wants me to look?  Was I destined to be the “ring, ripple” spotter while others get to see the real thing?  Is that enough?  No, I want to see the real thing!  I want to appreciate when I see the “rings or ripples” that mark a place or situation that God had impacted…but I also want to be busy seeking God always, heart open, eyes wide, and ready to witness His grace and mercy.  I want to be able to shout “There He is!”

          I did learn that day that sometimes to see what others see, you have to be where they are and be patient.  I stood on the dock for quite a while, but eventually the dolphin came into my view.  I don’t think seeing dolphins will ever get old…it is always exciting.  We watched as a small pod of them  played  around the marina and then disappeared into the deeper water, but not before I had a chance to point to them for others on the dock nearby and shout, “There they are!”

“How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, Who seek Him with all their heart” Psalm 119:2

Lord, help us to seek you with all our heart and not just “almost see” , but to truly see Your work in our lives!