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Living in Phoenix, we go swimming a lot. My kids were taking swimming lessons practically as soon as they could walk!

When I took them to their lessons, I could always spot the young mom who was taking her child to swim lessons for the first time. She wants her child to learn to swim, but she is clearly nervous as she hands her child to a college-age instructor, intently watches from the pool deck, and silently screams to herself, Be careful! You have no idea how valuable that person in your hands is to me.

In Phoenix I quickly learned that "going swimming" means different things to different people. After mowing the lawn in 105 degrees, I go swimming, which means diving in and floating motionless. To my mom, "going swimming" means sitting on the steps and cooling off. For my wife, "going swimming" means floating on a raft or tanning next to the pool. To my kids, "going swimming" means contests for the biggest cannonball splash, seeing who can jump through the biggest stack of inner tubes, or pushing their parents into the water when they think we're not looking. For my friend Brad, "going swimming" means 200 laps before work.

"Going to church" is like "going swimming." It means different things to different people.

Some wade in slowly—verrrry slowly. Some jump in without even feeling the water first. Some need formal lessons, while others have a knack for picking it up by watching others. Some people sit on the deck in street clothes, and when those in the pool say, "Come on in—the water feels great!" they just smile and say, "I'm okay. I might go swimming later." They came to the pool on their own, yet they're still not sure if they really want to go swimming at all. If you keep bugging them, they'll leave without ever getting wet.

Pastoring a pool-like church makes my head swim. Motivating those standing on the side in their street clothes to get in, persuading those who are just playing around to improve their skills, and showing the advanced how to help those who want to learn—it's the most challenging, difficult, and rewarding thing I've ever done. But clearly, trying to put everyone into the same swimming class wouldn't work here.

Is it more important for everyone to swim laps before learning to make a big cannonball splash? The freestyle enthusiasts think so. Should anyone be allowed to lounge next to the pool and never actually get in the water?

Kids on the diving board cannot understand why anyone would rather lie in the sun reading and talking. "What's the point of coming to the pool if you're not going to swim?"

Then there's the question of who's able to teach someone else to swim? Only the lifeguard? Sometimes the one doing cannonballs may be better at encouraging the one who is still contemplating that first jump off the side than the "expert" who thinks everyone ought to be swimming laps like an Olympian.

When people come to our "pool," we show them the deep end, the shallow end, the diving board, and the lanes for swimming laps. We have floaties and kick-boards for those who want them. Experienced swimmers already know what to do, so they just jump in and start swimming. Those who want instruction sign up for classes. Others learn informally by swimming with an experienced friend. And there are always some inexperienced swimmers who act as if they're experts, but their untanned bodies and outdated swimsuits give them away.

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