Here near the end of a very cold January, how about a nice Hawaiian Punch to warm things up a bit? These tropical Pacific Islands are known for their warm sunshine and cool ocean breezes. Even in the dead of winter, the thermometer rarely ventures below 60 except on top of Hawaii’s tallest volcanic peaks.
Although each of the islands has its own unique features and attractions, the Garden Isle of Kauai is the favorite of many due to its own Grand Canyon, its scenes from South Pacific, and its less developed landscape. It’s also the home to several thousand feral roosters that often awaken guests long before alarms sound off.
Kauai boasts hundreds of incredible waterfalls, some that descend many feet from its tall steep mountains. One of those mountains is known as the Sleeping Giant. It is so named because, with a little imagination, it resembles the profile of an enormous person lying flat on his back.
This striking similarity was not lost on the island’s native inhabitants who exploited it for their own advantage. When ships or war canoes appeared in the nearby ocean, they would light fires behind the Giant to illuminate its profile and to give the frightful appearance of him stirring from slumber. From a distance, it could also be perceived as some magical powers coming up from this lounging hulk.
As I viewed this striking outline along the top of the mountain, it reminded me of sleeping giants in our own lives. Too often many of us have colossal “bodies” lounging in the background of our beings that intimidate us in different ways.
In some cases, it may be a sinful action from years ago that we’ve either never confessed and turned over to God, or that we’ve not received His forgiveness for. These giants from our pasts have ways of looming larger than life and overshadowing our daily thoughts and actions. We live in fear wondering when they may stir and wreak fresh havoc in our relationships or at our jobs.
If this type of giant lurks in your mind or heart, it must be acknowledged and dealt with. God already knows all about it so if we haven’t confessed it to Him and sought His forgiveness, we should do so as quickly as possible that we know His peace and forgiveness as quickly as possible. He promises us in I John 1:9 that, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” That’s the only way to expel this giant from our island. If we’ve done this but struggle to accept the forgiveness God has already granted, we must take Jesus at His word knowing that what God forgives ceases to exist.
Another threatening giant reclining in our minds is fear of failure. Past mistakes or bad experiences can cause us to play it safe never trying anything new and not using the potential God’s gifted us with. The smoke of former intentional or inadvertent missteps haunts our thinking and skewers our dreams like a roasted Kalua pig and keeps us paralyzed in our boats circling far out from the beach. Similar menacing giants are those of situations or individuals that bully us and cause us to cower in fear. With such circumstances, it’s helpful to remember David who faced down Goliath not in his own strength but with the help of his mighty God. He is the same God who advised hesitant Joshua to, “Be strong and very courageous.” John reminded Jesus’ followers that “Greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world!” Courage is necessary to slay all these giants and experience victory.
As the yearning for warmer temperatures transports our minds to the Hawaiian Islands, let’s remember that God is greater than any sleeping or wakeful giant in our lives! Blessings, George