Frogs and Fishes

Recently, I attended a class in which I was the lone Disciples of Christ. It was the first experience of my feeling so alone in my spirituality, which was interesting because the subject matter of the class was "Worship and Spirituality." What I was struck by was the freedom I feel within my spirituality to experience God, Christ, the Holy Spirit in so many and varied ways. I have a certain "mobility" to my faith that keeps me from attempting to hem in my Lord. In this way, I came to think of this metaphor -- I felt like a frog among fish. Similar, yet distinctly different -- not trapped in any one way of experiencing God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit. I shared this comparison with a good friend who is equally rare and distinct in her spirituality, and she reminded me of what "frog" means -- "fully reliant on God." "Wow!" I thought. What does that make fish?

Throughout the history of the Church, Christians have been identified by the fish. To me it has always been a reminder of Jesus' abundant love for the whole people of God ... loaves and fishes, fish for breakfast by the sea ... So where does that leave me ... a frog? When my friend said that about being fully reliant on God, it made me stop and think: "Am I?" Do I live my life in that manner ... fully relying on God to supply my every need? I tend to want to shy away from that question and change that from "fully" to "freely". That's a significant change. I do attempt to live my life aware of God's abundant provision for me on a daily basis. Only recently have I begun to be "freely" reliant on God. Free from the constraints of the boxes in which people tend to place Christians and those who claim a spirituality based in Jesus' teachings.

So, I understand where that leaves me, a frog -- freely reliant on God. But where does that leave the fish? Is there a way for frogs to inspire fish? To leap about and bring some joy and laughter and freedom into the lives of fish?