[Guest Post: Alisa Hope Wagner] Luffing in Transition

I am currently taking a week-long, intensive sailing class that includes three courses rolled into one. My husband has picked up a passion for sailing in the last several years, and since we live in a coastal town, this strenuous yet accessible class was available to us.

I wanted to learn sailing not only to encourage my husband’s newfound sport, but also as research for my next WIP (work in progress). As a writer, I am always learning new things to add into my books, and this course is filled with unique words, concepts and adventures!

On the second day of sailing, we learned tacking. Tacking is when you turn the bow (front of the boat) into the eye of the wind, and the jib (small sail) and mainsail change direction. During this transition the boom (the horizontal pole supporting the foot of the sails) that is attached to the mast (the vertical pole supporting the side of the sails) moves laterally across the boat. 

The process of tacking can be dangerous because the sails let go of one angle of the wind to catch another angle. While the sails are luffing (the process of flapping because the wind is no longer filling them), the boom can swing dramatically to the port (left) or the starboard (right) side. The luffing sails make a lot of noise and are very chaotic until they are finally filled with wind once more.

As I watched the poor sails flapping desperately for wind, I thought of my own life when the move of God transitioned on me. During one season the Holy Spirit pushed my life in one direction and then, suddenly, the wind of His Spirit changed direction to begin a new season. This time of luffing or transition can be difficult and confusing until we follow the wind, so our lives can be filled with the move of His Spirit once more.

However, what I realized is that this time of luffing is also normal. The struggle of transition is a part of life as a Believer, as we follow the lead of the Holy Spirit. But if we trust and obey Him, the luffing doesn’t have to last long. We simply alter our course, allow God’s Spirit to fill our sails and continue on the journey He has plotted out for us.

God loves us. He wants the best for us. He has a Kingdom Plan laid out, and we can trust the wind as it blows from different angles pushing our lives into His highest design. We don’t have to fear transition. In fact, it’s the transitions in life that allow our sails to be filled with the greatest amount of wind, so we can go faster and farther than we ever imagined.

So trust the process. If you are in a season of luffing, just listen for the Holy Spirit and wait for God to blow into your life in a new direction.

“See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.”

Isaiah 43:19 (NIV)