Floundering

I took my sons fishing this week. All we caught were northerns, but when I was growing up in south Florida, my favorite type of fishing was floundering.

We would go at night- with nary a chance of sunburn!- and my dad would load the boat with the spotlight, three-pronged gigs, life jackets, and water.

My dad, my brother, and I fit cozily into the small john boat, and dad would pilot us to the flats where the water was between two and five feet deep. Excitement mounted as we watched him set up the spotlight. Then, he would give one of us the gig. He turned off the motor and jumped in the water himself, wading along, pushing the boat so that we wouldn’t make any sound.

Our eyes would silently follow the light through the murky water, watching for the elusive, camouflaged eyes of the flounder. 

The flounder has to be the ugliest fish in the sea. Perhaps that is why it hides its Quasimodo face in the sand at the bottom. After hatching, a flounder has one eye on each side of its face, like any regular fish. However, during puberty, one eye migrates until both eyes are on the same side. Then, it can lay on the bottom with both eyes focused up.

When our spotlight would come into view, the flounder could focus on it with both of his eyes and evade the gig. We gigged sheephead and mullet. We saw sharks, lobster, shrimp, and conchs, but we never gigged a flounder. 

My brother and I were too slow. All we saw of the flounder was the cloud of dust under the water, evidence that he had seen us first and escaped in a hurry.

The flounder is a perfect picture of humility at work. He sits at the very bottom of the sea, ugly, and alone, but keeps both eyes up and eludes the fiery dart of the enemy.

Both Hannah and Mary sung their praises to God in songs recorded in the Bible. As women who acknowledged that they had no ultimate control over life and death, they humbled themselves under the sovereign hand of God.

Hannah sang, “The Lord raises up the poor from the dust; He lifts the needy from the ash heap.” Her eyes were on the Lord.

Mary echoed her, “He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate.” Her eyes were also fixed on the Lord.

The Lord Jesus Himself truly exemplified humility each time He kept both eyes on His Father. Even in the Garden of Gethsemane, with the cross before Him, Jesus “lifted up His eyes to heaven.”

When we have our eyes on Jesus, we’re focused on the light, and any hint of shadow puts us on our guard. When the enemy launches his spears at us, we will deftly follow Jesus out of danger.

The world may laugh and call us ugly, but we know that what is foolishness to them is wisdom from God.

Are you floundering? It’s a good time to keep both eyes up.