I've just returned from my vacation at the beach; New Smyrna Beach to be specific. I've always thought of the beach as a place where the eternal and the everyday join together in a mysterious fashion. The beach is an example of how the essence of life co-mingles with existence. Essence has an eternal quality to it that transcends the need for description. When I tell folks I went to the beach for vacation, they nod their heads with approval as if the beach is a known. Which beach doesn't seem to matter, it's the beach.
 
While the eternal essence of the beach doesn't seem to change, the everydayness of existence changes non-stop. The beach's existence is always changing as the surf ebbs and flows; so too our lives.
 
Back in the day, summer vacation road trips were a time of beating back the boredom in the car until we arrived. Remember the games that you played in the car to help pass the boring hours of travel? One of the games that I played with my siblings was competing to see who could be the first to spot the license plates on cars from different states. I'm not sure that game is played much these days. As Debbie and I were traveling in the car, she had her I-Pad fired up and we conversed about neat discoveries she was making as we whizzed down I-75. Remarkable! Our lives are like the beach, ever changing and in constant motion. We didn't use a Rand McNally Road Atlas to find our way to new places; rather, Debbie asked Siri (an I-Phone app.) where the destination was located and Siri guided us along. Twenty years ago, I wouldn't have been caught dead without my trusted Atlas.
 
Walking on the beach I reflected on God's word with both its eternal and everyday qualities. The essence of the Word is eternal and its existence changes in mysterious ways in order to meet us where we are at in our lives; whether counting license plates or asking Siri for directions. The eternal Word has everyday applications.

Prayer for Today
 
Speak your Word to us, Eternal God, so that we may know your eternal truth and experience your loving grace in our daily walk with you. Amen.