Note: Today's message has some reminiscing about first ocean visits. The exposition portion starts below the photo of Brooksyne.

Message summary: A view of the ocean reminds us of the awesomeness of God’s power when we see the vast body of water and watch the great breakers crash into the shore.

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"The seas have lifted up, O LORD, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea-- the LORD on high is mighty" (Psalm 93:3,4). "For I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves roar—the LORD Almighty is His name" (Isaiah 51:15).

We were both raised in the Midwest, far from any ocean. I didn't see the ocean till I was twelve in Myrtle Beach SC and Brooksyne didn't see the ocean till after we were married for several years. It was near Rehoboth Beach in Delaware following a church meeting in Baltimore. Somewhere we have a primitive selfie of a slender young couple on the beach. (Selfies back then meant setting the camera on a timer and running to get in the photo before the picture was taken!)

Ester, on the other hand, has seen the ocean regularly since she was just four years old due to our years of ministry in New England where we were very close to several shore points.

Many will have a first-time memory of seeing the mighty ocean. Our favorite memory of another first ocean sighting took place about 8 years ago when we took our Amish friends to the ocean in Ocean City, NJ. They had four children at the time who had not yet seen the ocean. As we approached the ocean we began to pass larger bodies of inland water and the older kids would excitedly say, "Is that it?!" Finally we had that first view and the kids were impressed.

The three older children sure liked playing in the water. After awhile their Mom wanted their younger son, Eli, who was about two at the time, to rest for a few minutes but he could hardly hold still saying, "I wanna go back in the big pond."

Do you have a first ocean sighting memory?

Now that we live inland we find it a blessing to only be about 3 hours from a shore point where several times a year we can view the mighty ocean, walk along the sandy shoreline or boardwalk, and hear the crashing waves all the while experiencing other nautical sights, sounds, smells and fresh tasty seafood!

Monday morning before our return to Lancaster County I walked along the shore at Rehoboth Beach and a camp meeting type hymn came to mind that we sang in the old days. As I watched the pounding waves hit the shoreline the words to, "Like a Mighty Sea" began to form in my memory bank:


But not everyone has the opportunity to see the ocean.

In our first pastorate in Southern Missouri a dear older lady named Beulah Sutherland played the piano and often requested this song, as it was her favorite. What I find interesting is that she and her husband Tracy had never seen the ocean. Their only distant trip was as far as Illinois, one state to the east, where their daughter lived. The photo shows Tracy and Beulah Sutherland with a very young 21 year old Brooksyne during the "big hair & perm" days. The Sutherlands were in their 90's at this time. We were humbled that, with their combined ages they represented about 150 years of walking with God and yet lovingly sat under our ministry. We were still Bible College students in our very early 20's and their sterling example has served us all these years later.

The mighty ocean has inspired quite a number of Scripture verses, hymns, and settings for writings; both fiction and nonfiction throughout the ages. The above Psalm portion extols the might of God. The sea referred to by the Psalmist was likely the Mediterranean Sea. Israel is small geographically and Jerusalem is not far from the Mediterranean Sea.

A view of the ocean reminds us of the awesomeness of God’s power when we see the vast body of water and watch the great breakers crash into the shore. The mysteries that lie below the sea only underscore the awesomeness and depth of God's great power. Truly the waves are a fitting analogy of God’s ceaseless mighty power but the Lord on high is even mightier! How mighty is God? He's mighty enough to rule the great universe, yet small enough to live within my heart.


Be encouraged today,


Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily prayer: Father, any words we speak or analogies we use cannot adequately describe Your infinite mighty power. It miraculously reaches beyond the heavens, is visible throughout all the earth, and is resident within our own hearts. It is only in experiencing a personal relationship with you that we begin to tap into the inexhaustible power and might that flows from You, Almighty God. Even as the waves of the ocean are powerful and wash up on shore may You fill our lives to overflowing so that Your mighty presence is visible in our lives and spills out to those around us. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, Amen.

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"Like A Mighty Sea"  Video  Cheryl and Steve Thomson, aka Strangers and Pilgrims