Pebbles

The other day I walked over to Mansands, a secluded beach on the South Devon Coast. It is one of my favourite places. It was a bright and calm part of the day but in the winter sunshine you could see that the green on the hills was dulled by the season. The sea was relatively calm but the waves had a hint of anger in their voices as they rolled up on the beach.

The water was dotted with fifty or so surfers whose efforts were rewarded every so often with a swell which broke far enough out to afford a decent ride into the beach. The tide was low but after rain this beach stays wet as water pours down into the valley and out to sea so the thousands of pebbles which litter the shore keep their seaside shine even when the waves move away from them. They glisten in the sand, whites and dark reds, greys and purples all jewel like and sometimes there is a green or jet black. Most are mottled with intricate patterns, browns and creams.

If you have seen a beach like this you may have felt the temptation to pick up some pebbles and take them with you. But if you have done this you will know that the pebbles which appear some time later from your pocket or bag are not beautiful and glistening but usually quite dull and ordinary looking.

This, it seems to me, is a great metaphor for our Baptism in Christ. We are soaked in Jesus when we are baptised but from then on out our lives are hid in Christ with God and we glisten in the wetness of the Spirit. I would not suggest that the inertia of the average pebble is a good thing to imitate but that true beauty really is about being where we are meant to be (ie with God) and being soaked in God's presence - that is worth holding on to.

I ignored the temptation to remove any rocks from the beach - I know they will lose their appeal in my pocket. But I also realized, as we were thinking about the baptism of Jesus, that we are all called to sparkle and that that sparkling is something which God gives, which overcomes our dullness and speaks to the world of beauty and love.