TEAHUPOO (PRONOUNCED CHO-POO)
Considered to be the ‘heaviest wave in the world’, Teahupoo—located off the coast of Tahiti (an Island of French Polynesia)—is a menacing beast to say the least when it’s firing off on all “cylinders”. It’s as dangerous a wave as they come. Let me see if I can put it into perspective for you by showing some photos below. By the way, that little spec you see in the images below is the surfer.
This wave is no joke! It’s claimed the lives of 5 surfers thus far. It can be a death trap, even for the most experienced big wave surfers. Just looking at this wave via images or video can send chills up your spine. The lip of this wave alone is heavy enough to snap your spine in half. To add to the gauntlet, the reef is just a few feet below the surface of the water. If you go over ‘the falls’ (over the top of the wave) you run the risk of serious injury from impact with the shallow reef below. Oh yeah, I failed to mention that the surfer MUST have enough speed to drop into the wave or else he (or she) will definitely be going over.
Why? Because this is what’s called a fast break. This means that the speed at which the wave forms, crests and breaks is extremely fast and the surfer has to approach and enter the wave at a faster rate of speed in which the wave approaches. Henceforth the term ‘tow-in surfing’. In order to accomplish this, the surfers are towed into the wave via a small personal watercraft, so as to match—or outpace—the waves developing speed.
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I’m so sorry! I forgot to mention a couple of important things:
The surfer will be going so fast that their board MUST be strapped to their feet so as not to run the risk of “slipping” off the board or lose their footing.
The surfer is usually wearing a life vest, ‘cause if you go over the falls, you’re guaranteed the wildest underwater ride of your life. As in being tossed around like a rag doll in a commercial sized washer undergoing a heavy cycle.
Lastly, if the surfer makes it out of the barrel intact, they have to beware of the blowback of the wave which can potentially knock them off their board and send them over the top. It takes a special, fearless person to surf Teahupoo. It’s definitely not for the fainthearted.
I’m not that brave.
NOT THE “HEAVIEST” WAVE IN THE WORLD!
As insane as Teahupoo’s wave is, it doesn’t compare to a “wave” found in the New Testament. Suffice it to say that this wave has the power not only sink you, but to kill the one thing that keeps us going as believers.
I used to surf a lot back “in the day”. To be honest, I wasn’t very good at it. But I have to say that there’s was something therapeutic and peaceful about being out in the ocean as you waited for the set to roll in. Often times there’d be a visiting school of dolphins nearby—they were always a welcome company. Genesis 1:10 tells us that God separated the dry land and gathered the water which He called seas:
“And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good.” (NKJV)
The seas are truly beautiful! They cover more surface area of the earth than that of dry land. It’s home to the largest eco system in the world. Some of the most majestic and amazing sea creatures call the oceans their home.
Going to the beach is a part of life here in Southern California. My family and I make it a point to go just about every weekend and let me tell you it never gets old. There isn’t one time we don’t drive down Pacific Coast Highway (Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter) and are amazed at the beauty of God’s creation. Here’s a photo I took of Huntington Beach while driving down PCH:
Beautiful, huh? Yet as beautiful and calm as you see the ocean in this photo, it can also wreak havoc when tossing to and fro. During off shore storms, the prevailing winds can cause waves to turn into ferocious and destructive forces. Calm and gentle oceans quickly become raging storms that have been known to snap oil tankers in half and sink others. The ocean—which most times produces a sense of peace and serenity— can quickly become a source of panic, fear and desperation. To find modern day examples of such phenomena scrub through the video below to watch massive ships being tossed around like paper boats in rough seas.
*video by Licet Studios YouTube.
The bottom line is that beauty can turn ugly real quick just as peace can turn to fear in an instance.
Some of you might be wondering right about now “where in the world is he going with this?” So, let me try and land the plane.
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THE ‘PETROS’ WAVE
Let’s get to it. The heaviest waves ever produced are found in Matthew 14:22-32:
22Immediately He directed the disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side [of the Sea of Galilee], while He sent the crowds away. 23After He had dismissed the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When it was evening, He was there alone. 24But the boat [by this time] was already a long distance (Lit many stadia; a stadion being about an eighth of a mile or 192 meters.) from land, tossed and battered by the waves; for the wind was against them. 25And in the fourth watch of the night (3:00-6:00 a.m.) Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. 26When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. 27But immediately He spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I! Do not be afraid!”
28Peter replied to Him, “Lord, if it is [really] You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29He said, “Come!” So Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30But when he saw [the effects of] the wind, he was frightened, and he began to sink, and he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31Immediately Jesus extended His hand and caught him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt (allow yourself to be drawn in two directions)?” 32And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.” (AMP)
This is a perfect example of what can happen when the ‘winds’ or ‘storms’ of life blow so hard they turn a peaceful “ocean” into a menacing and ferocious storm, filled with what seems to be endless onslaughts of the heaviest waves of all called ‘fear’!
If there’s any one disciple I can relate to the most, it’d definitely be Peter. I’d like to say I’m more like Paul or John, but no, it’s Peter! I can relate to his “open mouth and insert foot & leg” method. Peter is your quintessential “oops, did I just say that?” kind of guy—much like me. We might have good intentions, only to realize we’ve just ‘congratulated a woman for being pregnant’ only to realize ‘she’s just really overweight’. There’s no way anyone can talk there out that one! Yeah, Peter’s my kind of guy. Thank God for Peter! And, praise the Lord for His mercy, grace, compassion, faithfulness and understanding of each of us!
THE FOURTH WATCH. GOD’S PERFECT TIMING!
The beauty of this account doesn’t start when Jesus walked on water. No, it started right after Jesus finished praying on dry land. Look with me at Mark 6:45-48:
“45Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. 46And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray. 47Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. 48Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.” (NKJV)
Let’s break this down. It’s AMAZING!!!
Did you catch what verse 48a says? Jesus saw them struggling in the midst of the storm from where He was on dry land. Jesus’ eyes were on His own. He didn’t leave them there to struggle alone. Jesus didn’t watch as His disciples fought the waves, wind and sea. He waited for the perfect time. In this case, it was the fourth watch. Somewhere between 3:00 to 6:00 a.m.
How many times do we find ourselves battered by the ‘heaviest waves of life’ and cry out to Jesus for help and it seems as if He either doesn’t hear us or is aloof to our cries? If we’re gonna be honest about it (and we should), we question His timing. We ‘strain at rowing’ because the winds are prevailing and the heaviest waves are battering us so bad our tiny ‘boats’ are taking on so much water. We feel our muscles burning from the constant and endless rowing. We cry out for help—for relief.
Family, Jesus sees you in the midst of the storm and His timing is perfect.
But, let’s not miss a great lesson here that I've overlooked most of my life every time I’ve read this account in Matthew and Mark. Why did Jesus wait so long to go out to the disciples? Remember that His timing and reasons for waiting are perfect.
I suppose the disciples felt they could handle a "storm". After all, they were mighty fishermen, so what's another storm, right? Having endured and experienced many storms in their profession, they probably took comfort in the thought that this wasn't their first "rodeo. But this one was different. This one had a HUGE lesson to it. I believe that the disciples trusted in themselves for deliverance. They leaned on their own understanding and strength to get them out. So, they battled and rowed over and over. Battled and rowed…battled and rowed. And it got them nowhere! Jesus waited until their self-confidence faltered. Until their strength fled. I love the way the Preacher’s commentary puts it:
“Their strength is gone, their nerves are raw, and their minds are filled with fear. Perhaps just one more angry wave will swamp their boat.”1
Did you catch that last part…their minds were most likely filled with fear thinking that the next ‘heavy wave’ would do them in. They thought they were done for. And that friend is when Jesus decides to step in. That is what’s called ‘God’s perfect timing!’.
The second part of Matthew 14:25 should put a huge smile on all our faces. This is what it says:
“Jesus came to them, walking on the sea.”
Yes, Jesus came TO THEM! Jesus comes to our aid at the right time—His perfect time! Often times we try to rely on our own strength. We believe we can do it alone. We trust ourselves way too much. Yet in Proverbs 3:5 we’re told to do 2 things:
“Trust in Yahweh with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.” (LSB)
First: Trust in God with ALL your heart. And second: Lean NOT on your own understanding/strength. Unfortunately, I neglect these two very key instructions in my own life only to realize I’m being battered by the ‘Teahupoo’s” of life and just when I feel as if I’m ‘sinking’ my Lord shows up to rescue me! And He does it in a way only He can…He walks on water to do it!
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But the lesson for me doesn’t stop there. Why? Because remember that I’m like Peter—open mouth insert foot kind of guy, right? One would have thought that Jesus coming out to them would have been enough to prove yet again who Jesus was. But it wasn’t. The disciples had failed to see who He was earlier on with the miracle of feeding the multitudes.
I hate to admit it, but Jesus has spoken numerous times to me as a way to reassure me that He alone is in control and that all is well! But I, all too quickly forget. I allow my fickleness to kick in and I begin to question God’s providential hand in my life all over again. Praise God for His patience with us. He truly is long-suffering.
Jesus walks on water to get to them and we see in Matthew’s account that they were terrified. They thought that they were seeing a ghost. Maybe they thought they were dying and transitioning to the “other side”. Who knows! But again, here comes Peter. I can almost hear the “Super Chicken call” (for those old enough to remember). And he says:
“Lord, if it is [really] You, command me to come to You on the water.”
What did Jesus answer? He said “come”. How amazing! Peter was the only sinful human being to walk on water—even if for a short while. But—and that’s a big ‘but’—Peter does something right away that most all of us fall prey to Let’s read from Matthew 14:30:
30But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” (NKJV)
Peter took His eyes off His savior. We take our eyes off of our Savior when the waves and winds are battering us. And what is the result? We begin to sink into the depths of fear, depression, worry, discouragement, frustration, anger…fill in the blank. We focus on the ‘heavy waves’ to our side. Our focus is on the problem and not the solution. As I stated earlier, this wave has the power to not only sink you, but to kill the one thing that keeps us going as believers—hope!
However, when we begin to sink in life’s storms, know that there’s One that will always stretch out His hand to take hold of us, to catch us and lift us up! Verse 31 says:
31And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
I love it…Jesus stretched out His hand IMMEDIATELY! He knew the gravity of the situation and didn’t hesitate to save Peter. And He still does that same for you and me. Friend, the next time Jesus stretched out his hands was when they were being nailed to a wooden cross for your sins and mine. The ultimate rescue!
Jesus’ words echo through my mind more often than not, especially as I get older…
“O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
BUT GOD!
Yet in my doubts, in my storms, in my feeble and fickle mind, Jesus reaches down, stretches out His hand to rescue me as only He can. He calms the wind and the storm. He comes at the perfect time! He’s never late. He’s never early.
So, when Rohn asked me if I was looking at the waves or at Jesus, I knew the answer to his question right away—I was frozen in fear at the ‘petros’ waves and not focused on my Savior!
Family, though the world is in the midst of a ‘Teahpoo’ onslaught and the waves are the heaviest they’ve ever been, know that our Savior WILL show up at the perfect time to rescue His own. He sees it all. He knows it all. No matter what you’re hearing from others. No matter what you’re going through. No matter what the global, national, economic or political news is, rest assured that Jesus is coming to rescue us soon and bring us into the boat.
May we look to Him in the midst of life’s storms and in a world deeply entrenched in chaos. May we not allow ourselves to sink with fear in the midst of the ‘Teahupoo’ onslaught.
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1
David L. McKenna and Lloyd J. Ogilvie, Mark, vol. 25, The Preacher’s Commentary Series (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc, 1982), 140.
