Learning to Swim

          For many years, I took students to Catalina Island for a week. The island, off the coast of California, has rich and amazing marine life. Many of the kids had never experienced a camping trip, bon fires, kayaking, snorkeling, or even being away from home.

            One year, as we prepared for our first snorkel, a female student nervously informed me that she did not want to go with us.  She gave me several excuses why she did not want to go, but none of her statements impressed me.  I was determined that she was going with us.

            She gave in to putting on a wetsuit, but the nervousness continued to rise. Finally the truth came out. “I can’t swim, and I am terrified of putting my face in the water. Please don’t make me go!” I assured her that I would be there with her. We could take a paddleboard, and I would not let go of her. “Please come with me.  You need to experience this.”

            The wetsuits kept us afloat. Without them both of us would likely have drowned.  She held on so tight that it was difficult swimming for both of us.  As we moved through the water, the student began to relax, but she maintained the resolve not to put her face in the water. 

            With constant reassurance, she finally agreed to place the glass portion of her mask into the water. When she did, my young student became giddy over the marine vegetation and the beautiful fish that were swimming just out of her grasp.  Orange, blue, and silver fish captured her attention until the once fearful student’s head was completely submerged in the ocean waters.  The beauty beneath the water was far better than the fear above the water. Discovery was more powerful than fear, so she let go of me, and began swimming around on her own.  After a while, reality set in and my young student discovered that she was swimming in the ocean, with her head under water, all on her own. She received a precious reward by exchanging fear and apprehension for discovery and joy.

            Evangelism is the process of helping people to move from fear to discovery. So many stand on the shore, waiting for someone to say, “Come with me. You will be safe. I promise that I will not let you go.” The fact is that people have no idea what lies just beneath the surface of faith because they refuse to put their face in the water. But once they are led into the waters of faith, a whole new world of discovery opens to them.  They are blessed, and are blessed to watch fear melt away so that faith can take its place.