The Paddle Out: The Struggle Before the Reward
A Surfing Devotional
Getting out to where the waves are requires work. A surfer paddles – sometimes for a long time – against the current, through rough water, against resistance. The paddle out isn't fun. It's a grind. Your arms burn. The waves keep pushing you back. You make progress, lose it, make progress again.
But the paddle out is essential. Without paddling out, you never reach the waves. Without struggle, you never get to the reward.
Many surfers hate the paddle out so much they avoid it. They only come on small days when they don't have to paddle far. They miss the best waves because they're unwilling to do the work.
Spiritual growth requires the same struggle.
Becoming who God created you to be isn't instantaneous. It requires paddling – discipline, effort, struggle. Reading Scripture when you'd rather watch TV. Praying when your mind wants to wander. Serving when you're tired. Forgiving when your pride wants to hold grudges. The paddle out is uncomfortable.
But the paddle out is essential. Without it, you never reach spiritual maturity. Without struggle, you never grow.
Hebrews 12:1-2 says: "Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith."
Throw off hindrances. Run with perseverance. That's paddling. That's effort against resistance.
2 Timothy 2:3 says: "Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
Join in suffering. Do the paddle out. The struggle is part of the journey.
Romans 5:3-4 says: "Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."
Suffering produces perseverance produces character. The paddle out creates the character needed to ride the waves.
Proverbs 12:24 says: "Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor."
Diligence. The paddle out. That's what creates freedom and mastery.
Many Christians avoid the paddle out. They want spiritual rewards without spiritual discipline. They want maturity without growth. They want to ride waves but they won't paddle. And they stay in the shallows, watching the good waves pass, wondering why they're not experiencing the fullness of life in Jesus.
Tomorrow's Practice: Commit to one spiritual discipline this week that feels like paddling – like work against resistance. Maybe it's a daily Scripture reading practice. Maybe it's a prayer discipline. Maybe it's serving in a way that requires your time and energy. Do the paddle out. Feel the resistance. Keep going anyway. Trust that the paddle out is leading you to somewhere worth going.
Reflection Question: Are you willing to do the paddle out – the spiritual discipline and struggle – or are you avoiding the work and missing the waves?