ali's Corner. [Jump]

Puzzle pieces.
Each created differently.
One piece having something uniquely different
to offer than the next.
Each piece is placed together
only when the time is right.
When the puzzle "creator" decides it is time.

People come in and out of our lives
for a moment, a day, a year, a second.
And never for no reason.

And to think I never would have experienced
this astounding feeling of accomplishment,
from works that I didn't even initiate,
had I not taken the leap of faith
God asked me to do recently.

It reminds me of when I was little.
Maybe six.
Or seven years old.
We'd stay at the condo in Florida.
The one with the underground pool.
6 foot was the "deep-end"
for my small body.
I was afraid of water.
I was afraid of drowning.
Of not being able to keep
my head above the surface.

My dad,
he'd stand in the water,
close to the edge
and I'd say,
"Daddy, I want to jump to you!!"
A smile would come across his face
and he'd hold his hands out and say,
"Okay...go!"
I'd smile.
But then a funny thing would happen.
My feet would hesitate.
They'd race towards the edge,
then take a couple steps back.

My thoughts began.
What if...


What if I didn't make it?
What if Daddy didn't catch me
and my head went below the water's surface?
What if I couldn't swim?

As my feet failed to make a decision,
another thing would happen.
Daddy would slowly start to drift.
He'd take steps backwards,
a few at a time.
Very slowly.

I'd whine.
"Daddy! Come back,
I'll do it this time!"
He'd come closer.
And I'd jump.
Right into his arms.
And I can honestly say,
to this day, I cannot remember
a single time that my Daddy did not catch me.

Sometimes my life feels like the deep-end for me.
Sometimes I'm afraid of drowning.
Of not being able to tread life's water.
I'm afraid I'll forget how to swim.

God stood,
in the middle of the pool.
I was on the edge.
My commitment I made to God when I was seven years old,
told Him that I'd always jump to Him.
But when God calls for it,
sometimes I hesitate.
That leap of faith
seems quite a bit larger than
what I remember being comfortable.
And as my heart failed to make a decision,
a funny thing happened,
I began to feel farther and farther from God.
It's not that He'd turned His back on me,
It's that I was going back on the promise I made to
always trust Him.

Last week my leap of faith opportunity
almost slipped away from me.
God said, "Jump child, trust me."
And I told Him that I didn't think I could do it.

He told me "See your problems as a chance to learn.
Rejoice in your sufferings and be thankful always."

I began thanking Him for everything I was scared of.

Then,
I jumped.

Not only has He caught me,
but we are now dancing.
The music is beautiful.
I can't believe I tried to dance to my own song before.

Every fear or struggle I once reluctantly held
have not only subsided, but as if
they never existed.

To this day,
I honestly cannot remember
a single time that my Heavenly Father
has failed to catch me.