footprints in the sand

Footprints in the Sand
October 2007

My iTunes: Shifting Sand by Caedmon's Call

October at the beach is quite different from the beach at any other time of year. All my life I've gone to the beach every summer, and each year it seems to get more and more crowded. Sometimes I'd go out at 7:00 just to make sure we'd have a spot for the day. No such difficulty this weekend! The beach was e-m-p-t-y, which made for some neat pictures.

One of my favorite mental images is footprints in the sand. It always makes me think of the poem "Footprints in the Sand" by Mary Stevenson, written in the 1930's if memory serves me correctly. Here is a copy of the poem:

One night a man had a dream. He dreamed
he was walking along the beach with the LORD.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of
footprints in the sand: one belonging
to him, and the other to the LORD.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him,
he looked back at the footprints in the sand.
He noticed that many times along the path of
his life there was only one set of footprints.
He also noticed that it happened at the very
lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he
questioned the LORD about it:
"LORD, you said that once I decided to follow
you, you'd walk with me all the way.
But I have noticed that during the most
troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why when
I needed you most you would leave me."
The LORD replied:
"My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."