Fish Life

I 've been blessed with the opportunity to visit the new Georgia Aquarium. It was an absolute worship experience; not so much what man had pulled off in the facility, which is phenomenal, but what God has done. Taking in the elephant fish, the leafy sea dragons, the garden eels, the anemones, the hammerhead sharks and the dancing beluga whales to only name a few, quite awestruck, I worshiped: “God, your creativity is endless!” And, as I stood beside (and under) a tank designed to give the effect of standing next to a coral reef, I looked up to see waves crashing above me, synchronized to hit at the music’s crescendo. I thought, “This is one amazing aquarium. What incredible attention to detail went into this!”

If I could pick the climax of the experience, it would have to be coming into what was like an amphitheater full of people looking through a wall of glass the size of an Imax screen, watching the sea life interact. There were 5 little black and orange fish swimming right in front of the mouth of a giant whale shark, almost as if they were taking the lead. I was informed they were actually riding the wave created by the shark. I watched a group of sting rays swimming together at the top, just below the water’s surface which appeared to glisten with sunlight. There were massive schools of fish that traveled in synchronized motion. I thought, “This is like sitting on the floor of the ocean!”

If you take on the perspective of a fish, I would imagine there are guppies and Japanese Fighting Fish swimming around in little box-sized aquariums all over the world thinking, “If I could only live in the Georgia Aquarium! Massive pumps circulate the water to keep it at the perfect temperature at all times. An amazing staff makes sure there is just the right amount of food for everybody. Lots of adoring fans stream past to gaze at your beauty, giving you all the attention you could ever want. And the tanks get cleaned every day! Ah, the Georgia Aquarium, the largest aquarium in the world. State of the art. Now that’s living!”

I wonder what it would take for a fish to realize the truth that the Georgia Aquarium with all its bells and whistles is still, in reality… a glorified fish bowl. It may look like the fish have got it made, but the truth of the matter is they are being held captive, swimming around in circles with no idea that they were actually created to be free, to live in and explore the endless depths of the ocean. They have what it takes to find their own food, and to multiply, to be a part of making the ocean even more beautiful than it already is.

For a fish to be delivered from such captivity would require it to hear the voice that whispers, “There…is…more,” stirring a desire deep within it to escape, to leave behind what it had always assumed was life. But even after that desire was awakened, it would quickly become apparent that to experience freedom would require it be rescued. He may somehow escape the confines of the tank, and begin to flop his way towards the ocean, but the effort would be pointless. The chasm is too great to cross.

The fish’s dilemma is descriptive of our reality. We are all born into captivity, and we are a part of culture that lends itself to setting our eyes on “bigger and better” in our search for life, in our quest for having “arrived.” Deceived, we willingly walk into bondage dressed up in “more.” Contaminated by sin, we cannot clean ourselves up enough to be allowed into the presence and life of God. To get free, we need a rescuer, one who would pick us up and walk us into new life.

If Jesus were a tropical fish, he may have looked like your basic grouper, but would have spoken strange words like, “I’ve swum to you so that you may have life, and have it abundantly. Turn away from this counterfeit existence, for the kingdom, the free ocean of your Creator is at hand. It’s available! Now!”

“How can I experience this life you describe?” an aquarium prisoner might ask.

“Release all of this stuff you thought brought life…and follow me,” he’d say.

Those with the prettiest fake coral reefs, and the best tasting fish food, or those who loved the attention of all the patrons would have the hardest time. But those who realized there was no satisfaction in all of that would say, “I’ll do anything you tell me to do.”

“OK,” this Grouper would say. “All you have to do is enter into me. You see, I was not born with the inability to breathe out of water, and I not only can swim in this aquarium, I can swim through the air. Some call it flying! Come into me I will take you out of the bondage of this aquarium. I will teach you the truth of who you are and all you were created to be. And together we will dive into the ocean you were made for. For you the chasm is insurmountable, but through me you will find it is right here! We will explore it together, for eternity! And I will show you how you can join me in my mission of healing other broken-hearted fish, and setting the aquarium captives free! Get ready for the ride of your life!”