out of our depth?

“Don’t go out of your depth!”

I can still vividly remember that repeated injunction from my parents when we went to the swimming pool or the beach. The rule was that I was always supposed to be able to put my feet down on the bottom of the pool or the sea bed and still be able to keep my head above water. That was a wise rule for someone who was not a strong swimmer. (I was limited to doggy paddle, a weak breaststroke and a couple of strokes of front crawl. I was such a weak swimmer that when I did my 10 yards certificate at primary school my body was so low in the water that it looked like I was walking. (I wasn’t!))

But the instruction not to go out of my depth meant that I was frequently stopping to check that I could still touch the bottom while keeping my head above water. I was worried about what would happen if I accidentally strayed out of my depth. That does not help with encouraging confidence, consistency in swimming or endurance.

You’re probably well ahead of me at this point (definitely if we were swimming!). I think that Christian leaders can often consciously or unconsciously give the same message to the people in our churches. “Don’t go out of your depth!”

“Don’t try something new or different in case people do not like it.”

“Don’t start talking to someone about Jesus in case they ask you a question you can’t answer.”

“Don’t admit to having doubts.”

“Don’t ask why it seems that God doesn’t always answer your prayers.”

“Don’t invite people to come with you to a normal church service, they may not like it. Wait until we do something special.”

And so on. I hope that I have never consciously said any of the above. But can people sometimes pick up those messages from me? Do I always play it safe, suggesting that others should not try something different? Do I present an image that I have all the answers and never have doubts, disempowering people who know they don’t have all the answers and who may have doubts? Do I ever admit that God has not always answered my prayers in the ways that I want, or that sometimes it even feels that they bounce back off the ceiling? By promoting special events at church and encouraging people to invite friends do I sometimes also give the message that ‘normal’ services are not for inviting friends to?

If so, then I am sorry. By reading this blog I hope you will realise that I am incredibly fallible, don’t have all the answers and am simply seeking to be the best free sample of Jesus I can, empowered by God’s Spirit. Do I need to be more honest? Yes and no. People need to know that I am normal (just talk to my family if you are under any illusions that I am some sort of super-Christian!) but also need to know that I am confident in Jesus and in following him. It’s a difficult balance to strike and I know I err on the side of caution. Perhaps I need to go out of my depth a bit more.

Teacher: “How do you spell ‘pneumatic’?”
Pupil: “N E U M A T I C”
Teacher: “Isn”t there a letter missing?”
Pupil: [thinks] “Oh yes! There’s a silent P like in swimming!”