The Story of Tom

While the characters in this story are fictitious, the story itself is about every one of us, because… there is a little bit of Tom in all of us.

There was a young couple who went to Virginia Beach on their honeymoon. I will call them Tom and Becky. Becky had a real relationship with Jesus while Tom attended church with her, but was still investigating what it meant to have faith in Jesus.

On Saturday evening as they were walking on the boardwalk they saw a poster that indicated there would be a church service on the beach, near the fishing pier, the next morning. As it was with most church-related things, Becky was interested in going while Tom was thinking about sleeping in the next morning, but because he wanted to be a good newlywed husband, he agreed to attend with her.

The next morning, they woke up early, Becky excitedly so, Tom rather reluctantly. After breakfast they headed to 14th Street and made their way to be beach. About 75 people had already gathered, all dressed casually, many in beach attire. The service began with a small band playing a several worship songs, not music Tom had heard in church before. People were singing and dancing, several even tossing a beach ball back and forth. Tom was very surprised to see that most of the people in attendance actually looked like they were enjoying the experience. He was used to church being somber.

After the worship band stopped playing, a barefooted young man stepped to the microphone and welcomed the crowd, gave a few instructions, then prayed. This prayer was different than what Tom was accustomed to. This prayer seemed like a conversation between the man and God, whereas Tom was used to prayers being formal and filled with lots of spiritual words. After the prayer, a woman in shorts and flip flops got up and gave a message on what it means to have a real relationship with Jesus, to seek after Him with all your heart. The sermon had stories and jokes and Tom felt as if the preacher was talking to him.

Something pricked Tom’s heart and after the service was over he asked Becky to go with him to talk to the preacher about her message. Becky was pleasantly surprised; in fact, she was hoping this would be the moment in which Tom would commit his life to Jesus. Tom only had one question for the woman – He asked, “You said we need to desire God more than anything else in life. What does that really mean?” The woman preacher gave a surprising answer. She said to Tom, “Walk down to the end of the boardwalk towards Rudee Inlet and look for an old man who spends his days sitting on the beach; he is usually shirtless and well-tanned, with long gray hair pulled back in a ponytail. Ask him that question.”

That seemed like a strange answer but Becky and Tom grabbed some lunch and headed off to find the old man. They quickly found him, sitting on a rock near the inlet, feeding the seagulls. After introducing themselves, Tom said, “The beach preacher told me to find you because you would explain to me what it means to seek after God with all my heart.”

Without saying a word, the old man motioned for Tom to follow him and they walked into the ocean, first up to their ankles, then their knees, and soon they were standing in water chest deep. Suddenly the old man pushed Tom’s head under the water and held him there. Ten, fifteen, twenty seconds went by and soon Tom was running out of oxygen. After what seems like minutes, Tom was angry and he exploded up out of the water, yelling at the old man, “What were you doing, trying to drown me?” Again, without talking, the old man began walking back to the shoreline, motioning Tom to follow him.

Once they got to the beach, the old man finally spoke. He asked Tom, “When you were under the water, what is the one thing you desired most?” Tom yelled back, “Oxygen!” The old man then said to Tom, “When you want Jesus like you wanted oxygen, you will find Him.” With that, he turned and walked away from Tom and Becky.    

Deuteronomy 4:29 tells us this, “But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Proverbs 8:17 reads like this, “I love those who love me, and those who seek me will find me.”

So today I ask you, how passionately are you seeking after God?