Shell•ing (verb) – To hand-pick seashells from the beach and admire their beauty in hopes of keepsakes.
Walk slowly and scout out the sand beneath you. If your neck and back are sore, you are doing it right. Focus your eyes and your thoughts on what the sand quickly exposes as the water rushes over and under the fragile handmade shells that were once brought to the shore.
As you go shelling, your goal is often to find the prettiest, most unique shell and, if you’re lucky, you’ll find enough to fill up a bucket or two. You’ll throw the broken, dull, small, ordinary ones back into the ocean and hope that the ocean’s most valuable one will ride the wave to your exact spot on the shore.
In a sense, God represents us and we are His shells, but He sees all of us as the shiniest, prettiest, and most unique creation on this earth. He sees our alluring magnificence as He gazes upon us. Once we commit ourselves to God, we fill the bucket of His prized possessions. I often compare to the broken, dull, and average shells waiting for God to throw me back. I fall for the lie that I am not good enough for God. A lot of the time I am too timid to ride the wave so I struggle to stay afloat by myself in the depths of the ocean. It’s crazy that we ignore and overlook the Savior waiting on the shore to pick us up and put us in His bucket.
As I search the beach, I look for shells that would be worthy to string on a necklace or put on my wall. Thank goodness God isn’t as picky as I am. He stands on the shoreline waiting for us to arrive and He uses us as we are, although we may feel broken and dull without purpose. Once we come to Him, we become born again and a new creation with a purpose to glorify him!
2 Corinthians 5:17 says “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
No matter our shape or size, the Lord uses our beauty to glorify Himself. He gives us a new life the second we put our faith in Him. He admires us as His prized possession, hand-picked to be put to use and shared with the world. He is proud of our work as we serve and love Him wholeheartedly. We stand boldly as His beautiful creation, flaws and all, because we have been chosen by the Creator of this universe. There’s always room for you in God’s bucket. You just have to be brave enough to ride the wave.
Jordyn will be attending High Point University in the Fall. She loves spending time with friends, photo shoots, and shopping.
