When God Leads Through Deep Waters

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A friend sent me a reflective saying: “I asked God why He’s been leading me through deep waters. He said, ‘What’s chasing you can’t swim.’”

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Ever found yourself in a difficult situation, maybe a trial greater than you can handle, and thought, “Why, God? Why lead me down this path? Why are You permitting this to come into my life and persist?”

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While the saying is not a specific Bible verse, the truths it implies are biblical.

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God acts purposefully, not randomly or aimlessly. Questions like, “God, why?” imply a belief in God’s providential and sovereign working in our lives. Throughout life, we plan, prepare, desire, and purpose, yet life does not always unfold as we had hoped. Solomon teaches this reality: “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps” (Prov. 16:9). Meaning, God has the final say in our lives, and when He detours our path, it is never random or without purpose. 

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God knows what we do not know and sees what we cannot see. ‘What is chasing you can’t swim’ implies that God leads with knowledge we, as finite beings, do not possess. When life does not go as planned, we question not only the path, but the God leading us down it. Yet God reminds us in Isaiah 55:8, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD. God is not limited as we are. He “sees” differently and operates with wisdom beyond our own.

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God uses difficult paths for protection. Leading us into deep waters to deliver us from the thing pursuing us implies that what appears dangerous is often God’s means of preservation. When God brought Israel out of Egypt, He led them on a harder path because it was safer. “For God said, ‘Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt’” (Ex. 13:17). God knew they could not handle what they would face and spared them from defeat and a return to Egypt. Deep waters are often protection from something worse.

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Unpacking this reflective saying grounded in biblical truth should lead us to praise God for who He is and what He does. He is intentional and purposeful, knowing the end from the beginning and weaving even adverse circumstances together for our good.

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Written by Craig Ressler