What’s The Rush

There was a typical rogue swell brewing that had me checking the cam at my desk all day. I was counting down the minutes until I could get in the water.

I was able to sneak out of the office a little early and I booked it home! I grabbed my board and headed to my favorite break. By the time I suited up and paddled out, the wind had switched, the tide became higher than I would have liked and the swell started to drop off. 

The surf just looked awful. Great. I was in a rush for nothing!  I paddle out anyway, but with a bad attitude and thinking I should have just stayed home.

I hardly caught anything and what I thought was going to be a fun session, was just annoying! I had waited all day for this! 

Just as I went to paddle in (Because Lord knows I wasn’t going to be able to catch one in), a pod of dolphins came through. They were a lot more active than normal! They were jumping, catching waves, and swimming extra close. It got me thinking, Man, those dolphins kind of made the session worth it.

My perspective started to shift. In place of frustration and annoyance, I put gratitude. People pay a lot of money to see dolphins and pay even more to swim with them. And here I am, doing it for free on a Tuesday afternoon.

I thought of Psalm 118:24 This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. 

Like just about every other day, I had my own plans for this day. I was reminded, this isn’t the day Colbi has made, but the day the Lord made. The day seems to go a lot smoother when I allow the lord to show me how HE wants my day to unfold… sometimes that looks like the best session of your life, or just sitting and being still, watching the dolphins.

Image by Collin Barbour