Eyes closed. Ears open. Head nodded, I lean my face into the wind. I hear the crash of rippled waves, rhythmic and steady, an orchestra of crescendos on the surf. I feel the afternoon sun, the heat on my shoulders, my chest, my legs, as if the warmth were as weight upon me. And even as I bear this swelter, the waves now crawl up the beach, swallow my feet, envelope my legs in a cool bracing spray. The sea ebbs around me, and I feel the soles of my feet sink ever so slightly into the sand. My heels, my toes, the balls of my feet, all embraced by ten thousand grains of sand.

I wiggle my toes ever so slightly. It stirs a hundred different memories in the water. And I smile.

Recently, Deb and I had the wonderful opportunity to experience a week in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico. Traveling with some good friends, we were able to disconnect from the real world and re-experience a lazy stretch of book-reading, floating in the water, playing board games and cards, and just sitting around waiting for happy hour to arrive. I always take these moments as opportunities to reconnect with God, with Deb, and with myself—in a sense, reassessing my soul.

In a moment of whimsy, I decided to take out my journal and make a list of all the beaches I’ve ever dipped my toes into. It wasn’t necessarily a long list, but it made me recall many different memories in my life. From eating salt water taffy at Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, California, to skipping rocks at Centennial Beach in Tsawwassen, British Columbia, to collecting conch shells in Nassau, Bahamas, to flying a kite at Moss Landing Beach, California, to snorkeling with the giant turtles in Maui, to strolling the Cannon Beach coast, Oregon. And the most beautiful sunset we had ever seen in Mazatlan, Mexico. I’ve dipped my toes in these beaches, heard the crash of the waves, felt the caress of the salty wind, felt my feet sink into the sand.

The ocean is a powerful metaphor to me. It is a reminder of God’s bigness, His power, and His vast creation. And when my feet enter the water’s edge, I am again overwhelmed by the idea that God made it all, loves us all, invites us all into the beauty of His creation.

So creating this list of beaches became an act of worship to me. Dr. Robert Webber contends that worship is the retelling of God’s grand story, and if that is true, then remembrance—focused on God’s revelation and our response—is an important aspect of the worship experience. This exercise of remembering God’s presence and nature and deeds in all these places and times brought me to a place of still, quiet reverence before Him.

Dear Father, Son, and Spirit: Thank you, Lord God of heaven and earth, that you saw fit to create such beauty. Thank you that you invite us into Your beauty, Your creation, Your ever-creative activity in the universe. Thank You that we get to enjoy Your creation—from my head to my toes. And thank You that You have walked with me at each and every footstep on every beach and at every time, whether I recognized it or not. You are indeed a good and gracious God, and I worship You here.