Grab a Paddle
Who would have predicted that mom jeans would make a comeback? Or the same baggie jeans where two people could probably fit into the same pair that were popular back when I was in high school? I’ve lived through fat-free diets and all-fat diets, with nutritionists encouraging high-carb bread diets because the calories burn faster, and nutritionists encouraging low or no-carb diets because the carbs turn into sugar. Eggs are bad for you. Eggs are good for you. You can get whiplash trying to understand which way the cultural winds are blowing.
Social media has made things even crazier. We’re constantly exposed to information, crazes, trends, and mainstream culture—the good, bad, and ugly—at an alarming rate. If not careful, social media can suck us into worldly living, shape our minds, and frame our worldview into unholy chaos.
Paul said in Romans 12:2, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.”
In January of 2021, my husband and I decided to pull our boys out of public schools. COVID revealed some things that made us leery and Zoom school didn’t work for their attention spans. While we did our best to protect our boys from worldly things, the world seeps into places that can seem innocent.
I’m a big proponent of minimizing kids’ exposure to negative culture, especially when they’re young. Until Jesus comes back, we are to function in this strange land, but it hit me that we don’t send missionaries into dangerous situations without training, so my boys needed some instruction on how to navigate the raging river of today’s culture before being thrown in the water sink or swim.
Author Steven James had a great analogy I borrowed: We must teach people to be kayaks and not innertubes.
When I think of innertubes, I think of lazy rivers at water parks. Fifty years ago, it might have been fine to have a Christian worldview and float through life, getting a little wet but relatively unscathed. Today’s culture is more like a Class VI river. It takes a raft, spins it around, tosses it up, and folds it in half before flipping it over, causing its occupants to swim for shore or drown in the spin cycle.
Kayaks, on the other hand, have a paddle. Even though they’re still in the same river, they can be steered through the rapids or paddled into an eddy to regroup. If flipped, the paddle can be used to right the kayak and keep going.
We must learn to navigate this current culture but not be consumed by it. Jesus said in John 17:14-15, “I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.”
Never underestimate the power of prayer. Paul and Silas sat praying and worshiping in prison when a violent earthquake shook the prison, flinging the doors open and knocking everyone’s chains loose. Coincidence? I think not. The Bible says, “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16). Paul believed in the power of prayer so much that he taught to pray without ceasing.
We also must garb ourselves in the full armor of God so that we can stand against the devil’s plots and schemes (Ephesians 6:10-18). Here’s how we stay above the waves:
Kayak - Buckle of Truth – God’s Word is truth. Our certainty in God’s truth is what keeps us afloat and holds us together.
Lifejacket – The Breastplate of Righteousness – Our righteousness was bought by the blood of Jesus on the cross. It protects our hearts because we aren’t powerful enough in our own strength to protect ourselves from Satan’s attacks. But covered in the blood of Jesus, the devil can’t touch us.
Bilge Pump – Shield of Faith – Faith can move mountains. 1 John 5:4 says, “For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.”
Helmet—Helmet of Salvation—As the helmet protects the head, confidence in our salvation protects and defends our minds from attacks of doubt.
Paddle—Sword of the Spirit—This is the only offensive piece of armor mentioned in Ephesians 6, and it refers to scripture. Jesus used scripture to refute the devil's attempts to tempt him. Knowing God’s word puts us on the offensive, and the demons will flee.
Water shoes—Fit your feet with the Gospel of Peace—When attacked, we can dig in and gain our traction in the peace of God’s grace. It’s not peace like a lake; it’s peace like a river.
No matter the circumstances or how raging the river of life gets, God makes a way. He passes us the paddle to our kayak and goes before us to leading the way.