Imaginary Sharks

When I was too young to understand the difference between make believe and reality, my parents took me with them to see the movie “Jaws.” I was five years old when they decided to go to a drive-in showing of this 1975 Steven Spielberg classic.

I don’t blame my parents for much, but I do blame them for my fear of sharks. They had a 1970’s Honda Civic. To their credit they had laid the back seat down and brought my blanket and pillow, and they thought I would sleep through the late show, but I didn’t. I saw it all. I heard the soundtrack. I saw the bloody water.


To make matters worse we moved to the East Coast not long after this cinematic encounter with “Jaws”. In fact, we moved to the New England area, which is the movie’s setting.

When it came time for little Scotty to take swimming lessons, it was in the ocean. If not in the ocean, it was in a lake or a pond. But in my young mind and unable to swim, it was always in the ocean to me.


All of us little kids would wade out into the water up to our belly buttons with our instructor, and she would have us make a circle while holding hands.

To help us learn how to go underwater, she would have us play “Ring Around the Rosy.” When we would get to the “ashes, ashes we all fall…down,” we were all supposed to go under water.

We all did, except one.
Me.

I was certain as soon as I put my head under water, I’d hear the infamous sound track and Jaws would eat me. I could almost see the blood in the water.

So, I would just let everybody else go under water, including the instructor, and when they came back up, I’d pretend like I was coming back up for air. I’d splash water on my face and in my hair, all smiles. Nobody said anything.


I thought I had them fooled.


One day while doing our opening exercise of “Ring Around the Rosy,” when everyone went down under water, I was surprised to find there were two of us standing up: the instructor and me, directly across from each other.

She had that look and I knew exactly what she was thinking. It was almost like I could read her mind. I’m sure she was thinking, “You’ve seen the movie too!”

If you were to ask my wife or my mom or most of my extended family, “Where is the most peaceful place on earth…. If you could go anywhere to find peace, where would you go?” They would tell you, “The beach. The ocean waves crashing on the sand are so relaxing.”

My brother in-law’s family would say “Riding the waves and the smell of salt water.”

And I would disagree with them because while those things might be true, they seem to forget something. There are sharks in there and they want to eat you!

I believe this is why God gave us the Great Lakes. There are no sharks in Lake Michigan. No nasty saltwater. If you want to feel like you’re on the West coast, take a vacation to Michigan. If you want to feel like you’re on the East coast, find a place in Wisconsin. Believe me, your kids will never know…at least for a few years.

You might say, “Scott, your fear is unjustified.” My kids would say, “Dad, the odds are better you’d be bitten by a person in New York City than by a shark in the ocean.”

We would all agree and say, “Fear is stealing my peace.”

And you are right.

When my youngest son, Brady, was four years old, he would often get scared at night. He would come down and sleep in our room.

Bringing his blanket and his pillow, he would lie on the floor next to my side and whisper, “Dad. Dad. Dad…Daddy… I’m scared. Will you hold my hand?” As he is lying on the floor, I would have to contort my body so that I could reach down from my bed and hold his hand.

As I did, I would actually feel the anxiety in his soft little four-year-old hand. There were times I thought I could feel his heartbeat through his fingertips. But in less than ten seconds, I could feel his hand begin to relax. Within a few minutes, he would let go. Then I would gently lay his hand on his chest as he slept in peace.


What Brady experienced in this moment was the “Peace of Daddy.”

Brady experienced the inward tranquility of a mind grounded in the nearness of his daddy’s presence, his daddy’s promise, and his daddy’s power.

Brady understands his daddy’s presence, my ability to be physically near him. Sometimes that was not enough. He wanted to hold my hand, to be in contact with me.

My son understands his daddy’s promise. He knows my heart for him. He knows I’m for him and not against him. I’m not going to trick him. He knows I’m not going to do anything that would hurt him. I’m not going to scare him. There’s a reason he doesn’t go to his brothers.
He knows his daddy’s heart is for his good.

Brady is confident in his daddy’s power. He believes I have the ability to take out the boogey man. In his mind I’m bigger and more powerful than any threat in the darkness of the night, whether in his dreams or in our home.

This is how it is for the Christ follower when it comes to the “Peace of God.”

No matter what sharks are circling us at this moment…whether real or imaginary, we can experience the “Peace of God.” We can experience the inward tranquility of a mind grounded in the nearness of our heavenly Father’s presence, promise and power.


“In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.” –David, Psalm 4:8

Identify the imaginary or real sharks in your life right now that are stealing your peace.

What would it look like to allow God to hold your hand through this season?

As we wash our hands, how can we be washing the feet of others?