REFLECTIONS
April 3, 2011
 
 
The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters,
but a man of understanding draws them out.
Proverbs 20:5
 
 
Still Waters Run Deep
 
“To thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.” These proverbial words spoken by Hamlet through the pen of Shakespeare have resonated with me since I first heard them as a teenager. They state a truth about life that is seemingly simple and easy. But reality tells us there is nothing simple or easy about being true to one’s self. Deep within the heart of every person is the desire for his or her life. And because it is hidden in the depths of the heart, it is often beyond the realm of the conscious mind. Yet there indwells the truth of who we are.
So to be true to self, the desire hidden deeply in the heart must be surfaced to the conscious mind. Still waters run deep, but most of the time our lives are not lived at that depth. Most of our time is lived kayaking through the rapids of shallow streams expecting them to eventually lead to the deepest desire for life. They seldom do.
Make no mistake, there are no suggested answers here; but there are some questions. I wonder if we live and base the decisions we make on some underlying want that will define our lives. I wonder if the underlying desire is one of self-interest or is God chosen. The answer, if there is one, will never be found in life’s shallow rapids. Still waters run deep, and to discover the driving force in our lives requires a visit to the deep waters of the heart. The truth lays there albeit sometimes too distasteful to reveal or too honorable to be disclosed with the humility required of it.
Still I wonder if God imbued in each of us a deep desire that will fulfill his purpose for our lives. I wonder if God’s purpose for Eve’s life on earth was to satisfy Adam’s aloneness and to make him whole. And I wonder if Eve was kayaking through life’s shallow waters seeking her own desires when she decided to eat the forbidden fruit.
I wonder if Paul was kayaking through shallow rapids when he chose to become a zealous Pharisee; and I wonder how he felt on the Damascus road when he discovered God’s deeper plan to appoint him “…a herald and an apostle… and a teacher of the true faith to the Gentiles.” (1Timothy 2:7)
And finally, I wonder if I will spend a lifetime kayaking through the shallow waters of selfish desires, or if I will come to understand and live God’s purpose for my life. Somewhere deep within my heart, perhaps one day I will discover the truth.
 
“You are the light of the world.”
RichardÌ


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