As a follow up to my post on the vision of what I am building, this is a conversation about why I have chosen the name Seacliffs.
I desire to play a supportive role in helping people grow themselves and their organizations.
The values of growth, restoration and connection are strong for me. When I think back on where these originated, I think of a 40-acre farm my family owned when I was growing up, Seacliffs.
Restoration
The land is nestled under a steep escarpment that looks out to the Pacific Ocean, on the East Coast of Australia, close to Byron Bay. A waterfall comes down a cliff face and forms a gorge that is covered with towering fig tree and palm trees. What is interesting is that it is a spring-fed waterfall, the water flows not from a creek but seeps from a spring, out of the cliff wall.
The sheer beauty of the land is breathtaking. Much of it was covered in rainforest. There are valleys and open areas that have huge trees.
When we first bought the land, noxious weeks overran it. Lantana, a small flowing bush in the US, would grow into vines and climb up trees and choke them out. Camphor Laural Trees, introduced from Asia, emits camphor in the soil and stops other plants from growing, lowering the diversity of the forest.
Our family played a regenerative role as caretakers of the land. We would clear out the weeds and plant native species. Now 15-20 years later, it is amazing to see how these trees have grown. Granted, it was God who caused the growth, but I am proud of the role we played and the bonds we formed as a family in doing the work.
Exploration
This is a place for me that signifies childhood adventure. We would explore and cut our way through the jungle like areas with a machete. Sometimes we would be gone for hours, barely making it home before dark, surprised that we found our way home.
One afternoon, my brother and I set out to see what we could find. Bear in mind, there are no trails, and very few people that we know of had explored this part of the world. We went along the bottom of the escarpment and found a gigantic fig tree sitting on top of the cliff.
The tree had a tangled web of exposed roots that came down the cliff. It was like the tree was growing out of the sandstone cliff face. The roots made a ladder up the cliff, so we climbed up.
At the top, I climbed the tree and sat on a branch that went out over the sixty-foot cliff. It swayed up and down, back and forth in the breeze.
I could look out over the flatlands to see two major ocean headlands, Brokenhead and Cape Byron, with its beautiful lighthouse, and the beach that stretched between them. The view was spectacular.
It was exhilarating and peaceful at the same time, and I felt a close connection to the earth and the feeling that the world is an incredible place to explore.
That sense of wide-eyed wonder has never left me.
Now that my family doesn’t own the land and it is long durations between my visits there, my connection to the place is deep.
The imagery
Another reason for my love of the name Seacliffs is the image it provokes. The rock face coming out of the ocean, withstanding the waves that are crashing against it. There needs to be a lighthouse on top of it, helping sailors know where they are, warning of any dangers and guiding them home to safety and protection.
For me, the quintessential is Cape Byron, with its iconic lighthouse, which is not too far from Seacliffs. We spent our Christmas at Byron Bay growing up, and we climbed that headland about a thousand times. One of my favorite memories from a recent trip home was gone back there with my brothers, their wives, and all our kids.
When you are standing on a sea cliff, you can see all the way to the horizon. I want to help clients have a clear view of the horizon of future success.
I see the Seacliffs imagery in other locations.
The Bible
The book of Psalms in the Bible is a book of human responses to their experiences and God’s activity in poetic form. Throughout the Psalms, there is heavy use of metaphor.
Two common metaphors are the chaos of water and the stability of rock, and they find the find a meeting place in the image of Seacliffs.
Save me, O God!
For the waters have come up to my neck.
I sink in deep mire,
where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters,
and the flood sweeps over me.
Psalm 69:1-2
It is clear here that the Psalmist is in trouble and a bad condition. Throughout the Old Testament and ancient mythology, the waters are often identified with chaos and turmoil.
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Psalm 18:2
This safety, security, stability, and dependability allows the trust to form. It a safe place, without the threat of harm, thriving and flourishing can take place. Safe, but not necessarily comfortable.
Stability and safety in the midst of chaos.
That is what I have longed for in my life, it seems like chaos and overwhelm are part of my personality. It is fun for the most part…except when it is not.
I have a propensity to move ahead constantly. Not one to stay put, jumping from one thing to the next. Even if my body is here my mind is racing ahead.
Not until years into my relationship with Jesus Christ am I coming to understand that he is the Rock of my salvation. When he was in the boat, he calmed the storm. Even wind and waves obey his voice!
May Christ be your Rock and your Lighthouse, guiding and calling you home.