Stuck in the Muck

One of my summertime getaways is a tubing trip down a river with some lovely ladies from church. We find a house to rent for a few days, plan our meals, and pack our tubes. Then it’s fun in the sun on the river.

The current in this river will mostly carry us along.

But sometimes we have to paddle to keep away from sticks and brush jutting out of the water. Other times, the wind is strong.

I discovered one year that getting out of my tube and walking with it was much easier than negotiating the sticks and brush.

From then on, I have walked the river in those challenging places. I’ll grab someone occasionally and tow them along with me.

Sometimes we’ll form a train and move swiftly down the river. I will stumble on a log or cluster of rocks on occasion, but all in all, I don’t have trouble with walking —and it’s great exercise! Yet there are potential “traps” that go with walking the river. I have come across thick, mucky grasses and slimy weeds that tend to entangle my feet and ensnare me. This muck pulls me, and I can feel my water shoes slipping off as I sink into the squishy mud beneath the weeds. This muck tugs at me, though the current wants to carry me. This makes me think of how the enemy of our souls also wants to ensnare us, pulling us down with him where he can drown us in temptation and sin.

He wants us to lose our footing in Jesus and get stuck in the sludge.

But there is something stronger than his mucky temptations! The powerful living water of the indwelling Christ will lift us above the enemy’s temptations and carry us on clear, clean currents of truth and strength that are found in God’s Word. River springs bubble, gush, cleanse, and carry away impurity.

Pure spring water quenches the thirst of the weary and tempted. God sets spiritual rivers and springs in the right places and seasons of our lives for the right reasons. Jesus said that those who believe in and rely on Him will experience —flowing from their own hearts— “rivers of living water” ( John 7:38, ESV)! When your life starts feeling like nothing but dusty hills, reflect on the refreshing springs that run between them. Then drink deeply of the living water found in the truth, comfort, and promises of God’s Word. Let the currents carry you, and keep you from getting stuck in the muck.

Cyndi Woods