I ran down to the beach today. It was such a beautiful day, warm but not too warm with a touch of wind and a perfect envelope of humidity. I felt fresh, well-rested, and energetic due to the differences in altitude and lack of hills. I glided down. When the beach came into focus, it filled me with awe. Living two years in a landlocked country helped me appreciate the majesty of the ocean more. I took some deep breaths, stretched a bit, and sat down on a little tuft of grass to watch the waves. It reminded me of how I used to sit perched on the top of the stadium at UCLA, how that would be a place I could try to get perspective as a pre-med athlete and a medical student. Like a place where I could meet with God, above the hustle of everything else. Today the beach felt like that. Troubles felt so little and I felt like I was sitting in the palm of The Omniscient, The Omnipotent. I wanted to capture the feeling, the bit of wind on my face, the warmth all around me, the sound of the waves. I wanted to stay there for a long time. Or at least carry the feeling back with me. There is so much uncertain up ahead of me. I would like to know what the future holds, to have reassurance that money won’t be an issue, to feel fulfilled in my new job. But I know things like that aren’t guaranteed for those of us who are in but not of the world. Already I have blessings that much of humanity would not have afforded in hundreds of years. So I try to soak in the comfort that God is taking care of me, to remember the feeling of being in a place where I can feel calm and remember how big He is. I ran back, not wanting to leave the beach behind, but hoping that I could carry the feeling with me for a long time to come. I knew dry times would come. Cold times, too. But I hope that I can look back and remember gazing out on the vast expanse and how confident I can be that God is big and has it all under His control.