A lot of us first think of water when we hear the word “deep.” If one is not a swimmer, most folks want to be sure the water is not much deeper than waste high. With small children, parents need to be certain the water is relatively shallow.

When I moved to an apartment with a pool one of the things I liked was that signs and arrows revealed the actual depth of the pool. Since I was not a swimmer at that time, I was delighted that I could see my feet.

As a child, there was a song we sang in Sunday school and Bible school that went like this: “Deep and wide…Deep and wide… there’s a fountain flowing deep and wide.” This song probably originated from the book of Ephesians chapter 3:17- 19… “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”

Ephesians 3:20 – 21: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.”

The depth of any pool, or even the ocean at its deepest, does not compare to the depth of our Savior’s love for us! And how much is our love for him… do we share our relationship with others? If our love of the Lord is deep and wide, He will give us opportunities to lead others into a deeper understanding of His word. Believe it or not, there was a time when I did not like to discuss my religious beliefs with others.. I “assumed” everyone was a Christian. I knew very little about other religions or denominational beliefs.

But just like God created the seasonal changes, He decided to change me. He changed my writing style and my shyness of speaking about him in public. My reading habits became deeper and my desire to learn more about the beliefs of others led me to a wider view of this diverse world that He created. Around that time, I was asked by a women’s prayer group if someone we all knew was a Christian. I had assumed she was, but felt led to ask. I was shocked when she admitted she wasn’t sure. I believe that God sent the Holy Spirit to answer questions that we had hesitated to ask.

He “broke” my rebellious ways and led me to learn more. (Sometimes more than I wanted to know about his ways.) “His ways are not my ways” and there were a few times when I allowed myself to sin against His word.

But one thing I have learned is that our God is a forgiving God. I found if and when we pray for forgiveness, He forgives us long before the world does, and especially before we forgive ourselves. When we reconcile ourselves to Christ, we are born again in His eyes and can become His ambassadors. The depth and width will continue to grow and our relationship with the Lord will earn His rightful place as #1 in our lives. Second Corinthians 6:17 reads: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone the new has come.”