The intertidal zone is the area of the shore that is underwater at high tide and exposed to the open air at low tide. Creatures living in the intertidal zone have to adapt to surviving on both land and sea, in the dark and the light, in the freezing cold and the blazing heat. Those who manage to not only survive but even thrive are the ones who accept the ever changing nature of their environment as a given and take seriously the responsibility of changing up tactics and strategies depending on whether it's high tide or low tide at the moment and don't simply slump down and shake their chitinous appendages up at the sky and curse God for always changing the game on them just when they were starting to get the hang of things. We live in an intertidal zone of sorts. Sometimes we prosper and flourish as we are covered and protected and nourished by the living waters of Jesus Christ. And sometimes the tide rolls out and we are left exposed to the fiery heat of trials and afflictions. Some crustacean or other might become extremely successful at hunting minnows and other small fry during high tide, but its hunting prowess and success cannot hold back the tide. And maybe this little crustacean is absolutely awful at finding food during low tide. If it were to remain at low tide forever, this might look like a tragedy. But the tide will roll back in and the crustacean will be given the opportunity once again to thrive and flourish. Enduring to the end does not mean that we are locked into either a blissful, tragedy-free path of benevolent obedience, or some doomed, white-knuckled struggle against impossible odds from now until the day we die. We are in the intertidal zone. Some days will be filled with pleasure, and some with pain. Sometimes following the Lord will be easy, and sometimes it will lead to ridicule and persecution. It may not seem particularly encouraging that the moments of goodness and peace and joy are temporary, but it can be encouraging if we will but acknowledge that our tragedies and crises are subject to the same temporary limitations. The tide will roll in and then it will roll out. Over and over. We will find more lasting peace and a greater sense of purpose if we stop moaning that we would rather that it be high tide or low tide and just accept what kind of environment we are in at any given moment and adopt the best strategies for that particular situation.
