Sand Castle

The wind blows and carries with it grains of sand.  Displaced, the sand makes a new home for itself until the mighty wind again blows and the sand finds yet another home.  Wind is not the only culprit for the waters, too, move the sand as it wills creating dunes, gullies, temporary walls or simply takes it to sea leaving bend remnants of what was once a thriving beach.  There, in the distance, walks a young child over the dune carrying with her a bucket and shovel.  As she climbs the dune she channels her thoughts to the sand...the sand between her toes, the remnants of sand in her bucket from the last trip to the beach, the sand she kicks at her brother who keeps stopping and keeping her from building her mammoth sand castle.  Finally, the climb through the sand dunes in complete, the entire beach lie before her, the sand ready to be molded into a beautiful princess castle.  She runs to the water, the sting of the cold sends her running back to her parents who tell her to try again for the second time it is warmer.  She does and then turns to her shovel and bucket...the time has a come for a beautiful princess castle.  She and her father begin to dig and quickly a mount of sand stands before the young girl ready to be shaped, ready to be molded into a castle fit for a princess.  The walls begin to take shape, next a moat is dug followed by the erection of a castle wall to keep out the enemy, A.K.A her brother.  Finally, after hours of sculpting, adding water, adding wet sand, adding dry sand, the castle in complete and it is time to frolic in the water.  High tide quickly comes and within seconds, the once mighty castle becomes a ruin affording brother the privilege of conquering the castle with his mighty stomp.  Down the castle goes, carried off to sea, leaving behind a small lump of sand...the fortress fallen yet the entire beach awaits its moment of infamy; it awaits the shovel and bucket that it may be shaped into a fond memory and notable sculpture of art.  We are this art, Dear Father, we await Your hands that we may be sculpted into priceless works of art, into priceless works of faith.  Mold us, fashion us into fortresses of faith and castles of love.  The winds come and we become tossed about this life; these winds of desperation, winds of regret, winds of past times blow through our lives leaving us chilly, displacing us in seconds.  We find ourselves unsure of the present and frightened of the past for these are the winds of the mind which blow through our beings when we least expect them and crush our castle with its strength.  Then there are the tides, Dear Father, these, too crush our castle and carry it to sea never to be seen again.  These waters are mightier than the winds yet stem from the same adversary, the mind.  Tides of hopelessness, tides of apprehension, tides of rendezvous with old habits crash along the shores and take with them pieces of our castle, flood our moats and crack the very foundation of our fortress.  Quickly the broken castles falls to the tides until there is nothing to show for the hours of digging, hours of shaping the sand between our fingers.  Father, we are the sand and You the master sculptor, mold us with Your wisdom, shape us with Your fortitude and bind us with Your love that we may become mighty castles of faith.  The mind will blow its winds, the tides will stretch its reach but with Your construction of us, Your castle, will we not falter to either which seeks our demise.  While the power of the mind is strong and relentless, Your power, Your might much stronger whilst Your heart mighty with unconditional love.  I know Your heart, Dear Lord, I feel the power of its love, this the binding of my castle, this the mortar mixed with sand to create an impenetrable fortress complete with exterior walls.  Though the winds of the mind may blow these walls will never crumble; though the tides of the mind may crash upon the shore, these walls will withstand its splash for our castle only penetrable if we all it to be.  Erected by Your hands, Dear Lord, this castle, my being, shallow never fall for I choose Your unconditional love, I choose to listen to my heart, to follow my heart lead by You hand, lead by Your love.  My mind my adversary which relentlessly attempts to destroy my castle yet it cannot for my castle is a castle of faith, a castle of trust, bonded with love, bond by a relationship strengthened in love and solidified by understanding.  You have granted me the knowledge to know Your touch, the understanding feel Your love, fortitude to preserve against the hauntings of the mind and the wisdom to seek Your help when frightening waters threaten my existence.  Humbly I implore Your help, Dear Lord, for the tormenting winds they blow and tsunami like waves crash upon the shore.  Mold me, Dear Father, mold me into a fortress of faith, a castle of love surrounded by a wall of wisdom.  I will forever follow my heart for I know You place upon me no conditions only love and I trust that Your love cannot be penetrate by the mind.  I have been molded in faith and today I stand a mighty fortress of Your love, there will come a time when I need some re ovations to my castle, for I know the mind will continue its plight to implode by castle yet its success will lie with the strength of my bond with You, my Creator.  Bonded with You, my heart beats as love; love I am, love I shall be and I will not  let the mind slander such truth.  Today, tomorrow, my future lies within the walls of my fortress of faith, fortress of trust, fortress of truth and when the times comes to be reshaped, remolded, I trust Your handiwork with my heart.  The winds, the tides, they frightened me no longer for I choose love, I choose the heart, I choose faith and fully comprehend my the need for unconditional love in my life.  Humbly I accept this offer and recognize it as the retaining wall around my castle.  Tiny grains of sand band together to make my castle, these are my experiences, these my life lessons, these my strides of active faith; may my castle grow wider with experience and ever more tenacious as I grapple with the battle between the truths of the heart and the lies of the mind.