Growing up, I was always drawn to the ocean. As someone who grew up in the mountains of East Tennessee, I wanted all of our family trips to have at least part spent at the beach. That is where I found my peace; and for the longest time, I could not really say why. As I have grown older and become not just more knowledgeable about God, but a pastor as well, I have realized that the peace and joy that I got being oceanside is very similar to the peace and joy that I receive when I am close to God.

Over the generations, humankind has lived by, survived on, died on, and explored the ocean. Over thousands of years, we still have questions about the ocean and the live contained within it that we have been unable to answer. As a pastor, I can also make the same claim about our relationship and understanding of God. We still ask questions about how vast God is, how God interacts with creation, and how we are able to feel peace and joy when near to God.

One thing that I always try to portray to people is that God is closer than we think. We do not have to travel galaxies away to understand the peace and joy of God. Instead, maybe our search for God can land a little bit closer. A place where similar questions are asked, people have searched and explored and been in relationship with, and yet still do not fully understand or comprehend all there is to know.

One example of how I have seen this in practice is when I was called to assist in a dolphin rescue. A storm had washed a young Bottlenose Dolphin ashore that had been found by a couple of local fisherman. Even though it had stranded, and probably had not had much, if any, interaction with humans before, it could have fought us as we tried to get it back into the water. It could have thrashed out in fear at every touch. Yet, whether it was exhausted, or trusted that we were not going to harm it, it let us pick it up and return it into the water. As we loaded it into a truck to take it to a safer area for release, I remember looking into its eyes and hearing it squeak almost like it knew what our intent was despite its obvious fear.

As that dolphin swam away, it reminded me that we also have a fear of the ocean. Millions have died in it, thousands have explored it, and millions more travel across it and vacation at its shore. Yet, even within that fear, there is a call that draws us towards it. We seek it out for peace and joy and fulfillment in ways that we do not always understand. We trust that being next to it will provide us with something that is worth that fear, time, and travel to get to it. So the question now, I think, should be, “how do we fear, dedicate time, and travel to get to God to get peace and fulfillment?” There are always going to be new things to learn and discover. There are always dangers involved in pursuing things that we do not fully understand. And yet we still pursue it. We still seek it out, talk about it, ask questions about it, and wonder.

So maybe God is not as far away as it may seem. Maybe what we need to do to understand God is to realize that there are things in our world, within creation, where we still get to have the same feelings and witness in ways that are fulfilling. Maybe that is something to remember that next time we explore the wild or go to the beach.

Logan Jackson is a pastor in the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church and the creator of the Marine Ecotheology Program. He is married with two children. He loves spending time outdoors and learning about wildlife and also enjoys reading and watching his favorite sports teams in his spare time.