Diver Down

My truck is pretty easy to spot in a parking lot.  Our second year of marriage, Tamara bought me some scuba diving accessories for Christmas.  Part of that package was a couple of “Diver Down” stickers to put on my vehicle.  For the last eleven years, I’ve had those two stickers in my back windows.

If you got a glimpse of my vehicle, you’d think I was an avid, thoroughly equipped diver.  That couldn’t be much farther from the truth.  I own the basic snorkel, fins, and mask, with a few accessories here and there.  I don’t even have my own BCD!

The truth of the matter is that I only dive when it’s convenient for me.  If I go on vacation, and I happen to be at a place that does dive tours, I might take one.  My brother and sister (in-laws) in Northwest Arkansas are totally different.  They’ll plan their vacations around diving.  They have their own suits and equipment.  They occasionally take diving trips to lakes just because they love it so much.

Sure, I’m qualified to do it.  I’m a certified, licensed open-water diver.  But I’m pretty much only a diver in label.  Why do I say that?  Let me give you a few reasons.

A real diver has all their own equipment.  They can be prepared and ready to go at almost the drop of a hat.  A real diver seeks out opportunities to make that next dive and add another entry to their log book.  They know the places to go and the places to avoid because of all the experience they’ve garnered. And as an added benefit of this experience, they become better at what they do.  A real diver gets plugged into a community of like-minded individuals that can help teach them and go with them on trips.

Me?  I’m just not that into it.  And when you look beyond the label I proudly display on my truck, you can see that it’s obvious.

As I walked out of Wal-Mart the other day and saw my stickers, it got me to thinking about what other labels I wear (Father, Husband, Friend, Christian).  Am I doing the same thing in these areas of my life?  Am I prepared each day to be the father, husband, and friend that my family and friends need me to be?  As a Christian, do I seek Christ and pursue ways to show His love?  Am I surrounding myself with people of like mind who are willing to help me and encourage me along?

I see displays of this incongruity around me every day.  It’s evident in the car that speeds by you with the driver gesturing rudely all while sporting the Christian symbol on their bumper.  I see it in parents who refuse to provide boundaries for their children.  I see it in husbands that have vowed to love and cherish their wives, yet can’t be bothered to listen and respond to her needs.

There are some things in life that are far too important to simply wear the label.  In the end, there’s no point in waving the flag above your head if that’s not who you are underneath.