The ocean floor

Walking on the bottom of the ocean
hulking weight secured to the ankle,
fully geared for the long underwater journey,
each step in the present so difficult,
but focusing instead on someday.

Putting up with the weight for now,
believing that it will be easier after
the next reef, the next ridge, the next drop, the next climb.

Fleeting spots of light catch attention
and are followed, but turn out to be
more deceivingly bright fish that lead
purposefully further into the darkness.

Frustrated and lost, the weight is drug
back towards the previous path, hoping
a renewed determination will help achieve the desired outcome.

Pride at each stride towards 'better' fades
as landmarks, earlier passed, appear ahead,
long after they were thought
          to have been left behind.
And the journey through the darkness continues...

I might be talking about you, but I'm talking about me too.

Not me now, but me then. How I came to understand

that I knew Who had the key to the chain on that weight

and He wanted to give it to me, is still a mystery to me.

I had heard it over and over, but how I came to understand, 

I don't know. I very much wish I did.

Because...

If I could figure it out,
if I knew what it would take,
if I only had the combination of words,
the right set of circumstances,
the book, the chapter, the verse,
I would make it happen in a heartbeat for you.

All I can do right now is say, "Look up! He's right there... waiting for you. He wants you to leave that weight there... it isn't important. It doesn't define you. Leave it here in the darkness... on the bottom of the ocean floor."

Once again you will have compassion on us.
You will trample our sins under your feet
and throw them into the depths of the ocean!
~Micah 7:19