Frogs in the Firepit

As you may remember, I spend several days a week working as a camp host.   When I’m working in the actual campground, my tasks can vary widely.   Cleaning bathhouses, making minor repairs, tidying up campsites, and picking up trash are just a few of the duties that come with the job.

The other day as I was raking leaves away from the fire pit, I kept noticing little “pops” of dirt in the firepit.   At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.  But upon closer inspection, I saw that the firepit was teeming with hundreds of tiny frogs!

When I say tiny, I mean only about an inch or two long.  They were hopping frantically in every direction, but the depth of the pit was just too much for their tiny legs to overcome.   They were trapped.

Watching them struggle, I realized they needed help.   If we didn’t get them out of there, the next campers might start a fire, and these little critters would be burned alive.

So, we set to working on trying to rescue them.  We tried to get them out using our grabbers - no luck; they just kept jumping away.   Then we tried scooping them out with the shovel - no luck; they continued to elude us by bouncing out of our scooper before we could lift them to safety.   Nothing worked.

And that’s when it hit me!    This was a perfect metaphor for our own lives.  

Like those frogs, we can become trapped in a pit of sin.   We struggle and strain, desperately trying to free ourselves, but we just don’t have what it takes to escape on our own.   Without God’s intervention - without Him reaching down to pluck us out - we’re hopelessly stuck and doomed.   

Without God’s intervention - without Him reaching down to pluck us out - we’re hopelessly stuck and doomed.

This is exactly what the Apostle Paul describes in Romans 5:6-8:

“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous person; though perhaps for the good person someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Just like the frogs that couldn’t escape without help, we all too often resist God’s hand, and behave this way when God is trying to help us.  We wear ourselves out trying to escape by our own power, while God is actively working for our benefit.   Yet we keep “jumping away” from Him, refusing to recognize that He is our only way out.     

Yet we keep “jumping away” from Him, refusing to recognize that He is our only way out.  

This whole experience reminded me of the beauty of God’s grace. He doesn’t leave us in our pits, no matter how often we resist or misunderstand His efforts. Just as I felt compassion for those tiny frogs, God’s love and mercy compel Him to keep working for our rescue. All we have to do is trust Him and allow Him to lift us out of the pit.

Think About It

In my little adventure, the frogs kept jumping away from rescue. In what ways do you sometimes resist God’s help, even when He is actively working to rescue you?

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In this blog, I hope you'll join me on my quiet adventures—simple walks and conversations with God, away from the hustle and bustle.

In the meantime, don't forget to check out Liz Trickey's blog, "God of My Depths," and Pearlene Richardson's blog, "Measurable Growth," for more insight into how nature reveals God's character in and to us.