day 2: when rescuing looks like cool fun.

At the time I was in fifth grade our house was two stories and my large double-sized bedroom window looked out towards the neighborhood pool.

If I wasn’t at the pool, I was looking longingly out those windows watching the lifeguards on duty. I was mesmerized. They were so cool and looked like they were having so much fun. Oh how I longed to be a guard too!

The year would finally come when I was old enough to get the training needed to be a certified lifeguard. I couldn’t wait. All I could picture was the “coolness” of me getting to wear a whistle around my neck and sit in a lifeguard stand peering down at everybody. That sounded like a dream job!

Lifeguard lessons begin.

Waking up for my first lesson my soul was stirring with excitement. My energy was in high gear. Finally a dream come true, I thought!

Upon arriving the instructor said “Hop in the water.” I thought, What? Are you crazy? That water was freezing cold and the instructor was not very patient.

Hopping in, I was ready to rescue. Show me the victim – here we go! But that impatient instructor starting shouting out, We’re going to swim. 15 laps! GO! 

This was not what I had signed up for. Where was the fun, sexy part of being a lifeguard.

I had signed up to rescue, not swim laps. To lifeguard in a cool apple-red swimsuit, swing a whistle around my wrist, and sit in a white mile-high lifeguard stand. Yep, that’s what I signed up for.

Did someone not tell the instructor that I didn’t like cold water? And hello — I already knew how to swim so what difference was a few laps going to make.

Rescuing is more than it seems.

Whether you are rescuing people out of a cold pool or rescuing people from the depths of despair, there is more to it than meets our dream-filled eyes upon first glance.

There is repetitious training to be taken seriously.

To lifeguard:

Can you weather cold water?

Can you swim long distances?

Can you communicate with people in a firm way?

Can you clean the pool and bathrooms? Do you know the chemical balance?

To rescue people:

Do you have knowledge to help?

Can you connect others to resources?

Can you shine God’s word upon a situation?

Do you know how to communicate with the outcast and broken?

Can you love the unlovely?

Preparing to rescue is hard work.

There’s a lot of practice that seems totally unnecessary at the time. For a lifeguard there are odd jobs that no one ever sees or rather doesn’t even care about. But plugging through all the tough and rather unsexy-unwanted preparation becomes nothing when you rescue your first drowning victim. To know you had a part in brining them successfully to safety – priceless.

It’s then you know you’ve prepared for such a time as this.

Bathing yourself in God’s word, taking bold scary steps out into a world the frightens you, and learning from those different than you sometimes seems overwhelming. But on the days when you see a woman walk away from prostitution, a young girl check in to detox, and even a homeless friend get a house . . .

It’s then you know God has prepared you for such a time as this. To help others find their way back to safety.

QUESTION: Did you ever want to be a lifeguard?

This post is part of the 31 days of rescue series. You can find all posts listed here.

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After wrestling with the word rescue for months, I decided to bring this word to life. I’ll expose the truths stirring in my soul regarding this daring, venturesome, and fearless word. Oh how I’d love your input too!