A Captain's Tale
Do you remember a great old song by Kansas called Point of No Return? The lyrics have some profound meaning when you think about it:
They say the sea turns so dark that
You know it's time, you see the sign
They say the point demons guard is
An ocean grave, for all the brave,
Was it you that said, "How long, how long,
How long to the point of no return?"
I will confess right now that I've never sailed. Yet I've always been very intrigued by the mysteries hidden in ocean depths. I imagine the stories of captains who have seen the unexplainable and felt the darkness with the eerie sound of the whales splashing nearby and the brilliant stars blinking against the black sky during the night watches.
We all have ships that sail, figuratively speaking. We all experience the waves of doubt, fear, anger, confusion, and at times the solitude of contentment when our ocean is calm like blue glass. Then we rest. For me, the irony is that the same One Who controls the waves is also the Captain of my ship. Only He knows the "point of no return"; when we decide to get in that ship, when we've gone so far that there is no turning back and we've truly surrendered everything and placed our future in His capable hands.
It's only then that we can know peace. Which is why Jesus astounded His disciples as He slept during a storm so severe they thought surely they would perish. Can you put yourself in that boat? Can you hear Him commanding the waves to be still and then feel the calmness? Without a full understanding of Who He is, we would have the same reaction as His disciples "who is this man that even the winds and waves obey Him?". I can see them looking at each other dumbfounded.
I can think back of many times before I knew Him when He calmed the seas of my life, when I thought I could not survive. Little did I know that He was right there, within reach - if only I had the eyes to see this One Who was constantly protecting me and guiding the ship along until I would one day recognize Him.
How grateful I am to know the One Who directs my path.
"Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if my make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will hold me fast." Psalm 138:8-10
They say the sea turns so dark that
You know it's time, you see the sign
They say the point demons guard is
An ocean grave, for all the brave,
Was it you that said, "How long, how long,
How long to the point of no return?"
I will confess right now that I've never sailed. Yet I've always been very intrigued by the mysteries hidden in ocean depths. I imagine the stories of captains who have seen the unexplainable and felt the darkness with the eerie sound of the whales splashing nearby and the brilliant stars blinking against the black sky during the night watches.
We all have ships that sail, figuratively speaking. We all experience the waves of doubt, fear, anger, confusion, and at times the solitude of contentment when our ocean is calm like blue glass. Then we rest. For me, the irony is that the same One Who controls the waves is also the Captain of my ship. Only He knows the "point of no return"; when we decide to get in that ship, when we've gone so far that there is no turning back and we've truly surrendered everything and placed our future in His capable hands.
It's only then that we can know peace. Which is why Jesus astounded His disciples as He slept during a storm so severe they thought surely they would perish. Can you put yourself in that boat? Can you hear Him commanding the waves to be still and then feel the calmness? Without a full understanding of Who He is, we would have the same reaction as His disciples "who is this man that even the winds and waves obey Him?". I can see them looking at each other dumbfounded.
I can think back of many times before I knew Him when He calmed the seas of my life, when I thought I could not survive. Little did I know that He was right there, within reach - if only I had the eyes to see this One Who was constantly protecting me and guiding the ship along until I would one day recognize Him.
How grateful I am to know the One Who directs my path.
"Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if my make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will hold me fast." Psalm 138:8-10
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