When Paul Hyers, one of the Core Leaders of Christian Surfers Jacksonville, had invited me to come by his house and shape a board I was stoked. For the next few months I thought about it often. I’ve wanted to shape a board for years. I guess a lot of surfers are intrigued by the process and the thought of riding a piece of art that they personally made. So, I was prepared for the big day; I knew the kind of board, dimensions, colors, fin set up, everything. But, what I wasn’t prepared for was God speaking to me through the experience and this backyard (well, front patio) shaper.
Paul grew up around Christianity but rejected it. He jokes about the old commercials on TV that said, “no one plans to be a bum.” He and a friend decided that this was exactly what they wanted - to be surf bums. When he got to the end of himself and decided that his way wasn’t working he called the local chapter of CSUS in his town. The rest is history. He is a committed servant to the surfing community. The first time I met him was on the phone. He called me to ask if he could come to our town and give away wax and Bibles at a surf contest. I thought that was pretty cool but I was even more impressed when I discovered that serving people in love wasn’t something Paul and the other guys and girls in the chapter do on Saturdays but is a way of life.
As we “mowed foam” Paul shared with me things God was doing in his life and the lives around him. One story was about a grom that came by the house ( cause what grom wouldn’t want to hang out with a shaper). So, Paul began telling him about the upcoming CS Prep School. The kid was really interested and started filling out an application. When it came to the place on the app that ask him to share his testimony he ask Paul what a testimony was. Long story short, the grom prayed with Paul to give his life to Jesus.
That day we talked about fin set ups, tail design and how God has designed each of us to play a role in this amazing story that HE is unfolding. We talked about all the opportunities Paul was having to love people from talking with them about the LORD to showing up early for events and making sure everything was ready to go or staying late to make sure it was all cleaned up.
I took that Fish to Panama for CS PREP SCHOOL where Tom Curren hoped on it. I don’t think that he’s gonna change sponsors but it was fun to see him enjoying something I had a hand in making. It was so much fun helping Paul shape that fish. I can’t wait to shape a board all by myself. It was also fun having a real life example in front of me of what it means to strive to do “everything” for the glory of God. Oh, by the way, “AFG” stands for All For God.
